06-14-2014, 05:06 PM
http://www.sci-news.com/geology/science-...01806.html
I think this is a significant finding, and will challange a lot of assumptions about how we approach the study of things like volcanism, plate tectonics and earths magnetic field.
Quote:Ringwoodite has been found in meteorites but, until now, no terrestrial sample has ever been unearthed because scientists haven’t been able to conduct fieldwork at extreme depths.
Analysis of the mineral shows it contains a significant amount of water – 1.5 per cent of its weight.
The mineral was found in 2008 in the Juina area of Mato Grosso, Brazil, where artisan miners unearthed the host diamond from shallow river gravels.
The diamond had been brought to the Earth’s surface by a volcanic rock known as kimberlite – the most deeply derived of all volcanic rocks.
“This sample really provides extremely strong confirmation that there are local wet spots deep in the Earth in this area. That particular zone in the Earth, the transition zone, might have as much water as all the world’s oceans put together,” Prof Pearson said.
I think this is a significant finding, and will challange a lot of assumptions about how we approach the study of things like volcanism, plate tectonics and earths magnetic field.