There is more than a quadrillion tons of diamonds under the surface of the Earth, say scientists

In fact, diamonds in the Earth are much more common than we thought. About 1000 times more common, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

A new study by an interdisciplinary team of researchers used seismic technology (the same kind used to measure earthquakes) to estimate that quadrillion tons of diamonds the surface of the earth.

This is 1,000,000,000,000,000 — a thousand times more than a trillion.

Do not expect a massive rush on diamonds, though.

The deposits are located about 90 to 150 miles below the surface of the Earth, much deeper than the current mining machinery. The Mir diamond mine in Russia, for example, is the second largest artificial hole in the world and is only about a third of a mile deep

How the researchers calculated the numbers

Seismic technology uses sound waves to perform measurements because their velocities change depending on the composition, temperature, and density of the rocks and minerals they pass through.

The cratons, masses of rock in the shape of overturned mountains, are deeply sunk into the earth. They are generally cooler and less dense than the surrounding rocks and result in faster sound waves.

But scientists have observed that the waves become even faster when they cross the bottom of the cratons. roots

So they set up virtual rocks, made from potential combinations of materials, and using three-dimensional models, compared the velocities of sound through variations.

Sound travels through the diamond twice as fast as other rocks. The team of researchers therefore thought that there must be some material in the cratons.

"Diamonds are perfect because they are a bit denser, but we do not need much of them," said Ulrich Faul, a researcher with the Department of Earth Sciences, Atmosphere and planets of MIT. main participant in the study.

Faul, who worked in the laboratory with a team of seismologists, geochemists and other scientists, slightly increased the amount of diamond in virtual rocks until they reach a product the same advanced speeds that they had encountered using seismic technology on the real Earth.

This amount was 1-2% of the craton.

Next, the team multiplied this percentage by the total volume of cratonic roots in the Earth, estimated by extensive mapping of new and old rock formations. They found a quadrillion. That's at least 1000 times more diamonds than scientists had predicted

How Diamonds are formed

Faul says the location of the diamonds at the base of the cratons is the most logical. through the medium of extreme pressure and extreme heat, so the weight of all the rock above provides ideal conditions for their formation deep in the mantle of the earth.

Diamonds found in necklaces and rings come closer to the Earth's surface, usually through volcanic eruptions, Faul told CNN.

The study also included researchers from various national and international institutions, including the University of California at Berkeley, Harvard University, the University of Melbourne, and the University of California. University of Science and Technology of China, among others.