Diamond Road Three Billion Years Long

Nikolai P. POKHILENKO

Diamond is one of the most mysterious minerals on Earth. For many centuries it has been in the focus of attention as the most expensive, romantic and desired precious stone. According to ancient legends, diamonds are like people: they have a life of their own. Their origin and history had been a mystery for a long time. The analytical methods enabling to study the composition, structure and age of diamonds and of the micro mineral inclusions contained in them were developed only at the turn of the 21st century.

How do diamonds form in the Earth’s upper mantle; what stages of evolution do they pass through after they come up to the upper level of the Earth’s crust; and, finally, how can we find them? Answering these questions is Nikolai P. Pokhilenko, director of the Institute of Geology and Mineralogy of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (SB RAS), corresponding member of RAS, who has played the key role in the discovery of the unique diamond deposit on Snap Lake, Canada

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