Discover 33 strange gems that help 'turn back time' on Earth

The team led by geologist Nadja Drabon from Harvard University (USA) said that these are extremely rare mineral crystals, formed under conditions of subduction - when the edge of a tectonic plate slides down. edge of the adjacent array.

Plate tectonics can be roughly understood as pieces of the Earth's crust. These plates are constantly moving, sliding over each other, causing the continents and oceans they carry on their backs to constantly change shape. It was the process of plate tectonics that made the Earth appear supercontinent many times, then disintegrate into many continents like today.

A large zircon crystal is attached to a "base" made of calcite

Plate tectonics and other geological activities play an important role in creating conditions suitable for life on Earth, changing the composition of the oceans and atmosphere, so understanding when and how A kick-started plate tectonics knowledge could help find answers to the big question: what makes the Earth livable.

According to Science Alert, the analysis of these zircons could provide just that. The metal hafnium isotopes and the trace elements in them can be used to infer the type of rock from which they crystallize, marked by specific dates.

These crystals are virtually "immortal", intact from their birth, but can only be excavated at 12 locations around the globe.

This treasure, unearthed in the Barberton Greenstone Belt in South Africa, will provide a rare opportunity to "turn back time" as far back as the Great Fire City. billion years ago) and the first few hundred million years of the Lien Dai Tai.

The oldest particles also help hint at the composition of the hypothetical "Hell-Earth" crust. Scientists have always believed that in the Great Fire City, the entire exoplanet was a hot ball of fire with a sea of ​​lava, but definitive evidence of the composition of this early crust is extremely rare.