Thanks BenLurkin.
Posted on 11/17/2021 3:45:46 PM PST by BenLurkin
Researchers say they've recovered a mineral from deep inside the Earth — one they thought would never see the light of day.
Scientists at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, named the mineral "davemaoite," after Ho-kwang "Dave" Mao, a retired experimental geophysicist whose influence on the field is still felt today.
"It's an opportunity to give him credit for his big contributions," said Oliver Tschauner, a mineralogist who led a study of the rare mineral, in an interview with NPR's Morning Edition.
No one ever expected to see the mineral on the Earth's surface.
That's because deep-Earth minerals like davemaoite aren't suited to survive outside the high-pressure environments where they're made. But this sample of davemaoite did survive. Trapped inside a diamond, the mineral made the more than 410-mile journey to the Earth's surface from its lower mantle — the layer between the planet's core and crust. Without the diamond's strength, the davemaoite would've fallen apart.
"That was, a little bit of luck that we found it," said Tschauner.
Scientists in 1975 had previously theorized that the crystalized compound, calcium silicate perovskite, existed within the Earth's mantle. But now they have proof, marking "the first time that lower mantle minerals have ever been observed in nature," according to a news release from the university on Monday.
The diamond-encased mineral was mined in Botswana before a gem dealer sold it to a mineralogist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.
"Jewelers, of course, want the flawless diamond — the one that does not have any inclusions," said Tschauner.
When Tschauner and his team finally got hold of the rarity, they used what he described as a specialized X-ray, known as a synchrotron, to study it.
The finding will help scientists get a clearer picture of the evolution of the Earth's mantle, according to Tschauner. Scientists also believe davemaoite plays a key role in generating heat flow in the Earth's mantle, which in turn drives processes such as plate tectonics that reshape the Earth's landmasses.
And it's official: Last year, before Tschauner's team published their findings, the International Mineralogical Association added davemaoite to its list of minerals. As for the sample itself, it's now in safe-keeping at the Los Angeles Natural History Museum.
This is actually pretty cool. Wonder what it will end up being worth? Since it is the only one on earth.
I have my own mineral—AVOIDINITE.
Whenever the wife and I walking down the sidewalk of a tourist town, I toss out some AVOIDINITE and she has no desire to enter a cutesy shop.
More rare than moonrocks.
I predict very few will end up in jewelry. Ugly stone:
https://www.popsci.com/uploads/2021/11/16/celestian-NHMLA-davemaoite.jpg
Yep... :)
Lol. :)
That’s a deal, we’ll be paying that much for a loaf of bread by 2024.
It has to hold up better than my Dollar Store tools made out of Chinesium.
Well in that case,
"And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch." (Mark 13:37)
It's a weird little world out there!
Chinesium is metal from a metamorphic mineral ore. It is Buickite and Fordite melted under extreme heat.
specialized X-ray, known as a synchrotron, to study it.…”””
Oh c’mon that word was invented by a circa 1955 SCI FI screenwriter.
My favorite rock is leverite. Unless you want to carry it.
Dave’s not here.
There is a vast amount of another mineral, called Ringwoodite, found deep underground, which is believed to have between 1 and 3 times the water that is found on the surface of Earth.
All the way from the lower mantle to the surface, over 400 miles. That is one amazing journey even for a diamond.
Thanks BenLurkin. At least it wasn't named after Superman's gay lover.
Rectumite?
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