Deep origin of rare blue diamonds revealed in their flaws
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August 2, 2018
WASHINGTON (AP) — Blue diamonds — like the Smithsonian's famous Hope diamond — are the rarest of all and how they formed more than a billion years ago is a bit of a mystery. Now scientists think they have a glimmer of an answer.
They've long known that the blue tint comes from traces of boron in the diamond. But the element is mostly found near the Earth's surface, not deep down where diamonds are typically created.
Researchers scrutinized 46 blue diamonds, studying imperfections in the gems for clues.
"The origin of blue diamonds is such an alluring question — you don't see them very often. A...
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