Black Diamonds: Made from Stars

"Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, How I Wonder What You Are, Up Above The World So High, Like A Diamond In The Sky."

The scientific name for Black Diamonds is Carbonado, from the Portuguese word for burned or carbonized. Black Diamonds were first discovered in Brazil in the 1800s and recently in Central Africa. There are several characteristics that separate black diamonds from other diamonds. These characteristics are 1) Unlike white diamonds, which are single crystals, Black Diamonds are a collection of individual crystals; 2) Black Diamonds have an internal strong luminescence caused by nitrogen that white diamonds do not have; 3) Black Diamonds are only found in two areas of the world, where as white diamonds are found all around the world, and 4) White diamonds have been discovered for thousands of years, and Black Diamonds were only discovered less than 200 years ago. These differences create an aura of mystery around Black Diamonds. Until recently, scientists have not understood how natural Black Diamonds were formed, but they have long understood how white diamonds are formed. In 1996, Geologist Stephen Haggerty of the University of Massachusettes stunned the audience at the American Geophysical Union meeting with the most probable origin of Black Diamonds. Black Diamonds were born in dying stars when carbon was crushed into dense clusters of black diamond and hurled into deep space. Eons later, the Sun�s gravity lured some of this material into our solar system, where blocks of it slammed into our atmosphere, shattering into the fragments that we have discovered in select areas today. (These areas, now known as Brazil and Central Aftrica were once one continent known as Pangaea, but are now separate continents. For this history, visit Pangaea). In fact, recent atomic measurements of Black Diamonds have placed their origins at nearly four billion years ago, a time when a constant barrage of giant meteors battered the Earth. Because of this, natural Black Diamonds are very rare and probably the oldest thing on earth that you can hold! But, wait�Diamonds forming in Outer Space? That Is Shocking. However, scientists have said for a while that the planets Uranus and Neptune may actually rain diamonds! How? Scientists have discovered that the gaseous atmosphere of these planets contains methane, a hydrocarbon. The planets have temperatures between 3,000 and 12,000 degrees Farenheit and pressure up to six million times the pressure of our atmosphere. This is an ideal condition for producing diamonds. So, why not just fly to outer space and collect a bunch of diamonds? Unfortunately, the possibility of harvesting diamonds on Uranus and Neptune is very remote, literally. These planets are roughly 1,700 and 2,720 million miles away from Earth, respectively, and the atmospheric pressure too strong to withstand.

One final word on Black Diamonds: In this Blog Post, I am referring to Natural Black Diamonds. Please be aware that there also exists in the marketplace today Treated Black Diamonds. These are regular diamonds that have either been heat treated or irradiated to make them look black. So if you are shopping for a fine Black Diamond, be sure to shop at a reputable Jeweler and ask if it is a Natural Black Diamond or if it has been Treated.