Finders Keepers – Crater of Diamonds State Park
[dt_fancy_image style=”1″ border=”0″ lightbox=”false” animation=”none” align=”right” width=”” media=”” image_alt=”” hd_image=”http://jfjco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Crater_Diamonds_State_Park-.jpg” image=”http://jfjco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Crater_Diamonds_State_Park-.jpg”][/dt_fancy_image]Digging for buried treasure? Well if you are in Crater of Diamonds State Park, than that is exactly what you are doing. If you have ever done an Internet search on diamonds in North America, then you must have come across this popular tourist attraction. In the past two years alone, two tourists have visited, got dirty, and hit the jackpot finding their own diamond in the rough.
Crater of Diamonds State Park, is an Arkansas state park located in Pike County, Arkansas. It is a lamproite diamonds sites, and the only diamond site open to the public. To understand why diamonds are found in Crater of Diamonds State Park, you must first understand how a diamonds are made.
The Earth’s Mantel
Have you ever wondered what was inside the Earth? If you cut the Earth in half what would you find?
The inside of the Earth is made-up of chemical layers (think onion layers, but much, much thicker). The Earth’s mantel is the layer between the crust (the continental crust) and the outer core (which surround the central core of the Earth). Diamonds are formed from carbon atoms that are trapped in the Earth’s mantel, and through intense pressure (the pressure of the world, literally), these atoms crystalize to form a diamond lattice, more commonly known as a diamond.
So once the diamond is created in the Earth’s mantel, how does it make it’s way to the Earth’s surface?
[dt_fancy_image style=”1″ border=”0″ lightbox=”false” animation=”none” align=”center” width=”275″ media=”” image_alt=”” hd_image=”http://jfjco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Earth_Mantel.jpg” image=”http://jfjco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Earth_Mantel.jpg”][/dt_fancy_image]
The Road Up
Diamonds are found in/on rocks that have been formed in the Earth’s mantel. These rocks are carried by magma (molten rock) to the Earth’s surface during a volcanic eruption. When the magma has cooled, it becomes known as kimberlite rock or lamproite rock.
Crater of Diamonds State Park, is located on the “Prairie Creek” the site of a volcanic eruption millions of years ago. The magma from this eruption has cooled into a rock known as lamproite, and contains diamonds formed over three billion years ago.
[dt_fancy_image style=”1″ border=”0″ lightbox=”false” animation=”none” align=”center” width=”275″ media=”” image_alt=”” hd_image=”http://jfjco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Diamonds_On_Up.jpg” image=”http://jfjco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Diamonds_On_Up.jpg”][/dt_fancy_image]
Crater of Diamonds State Park Today
Today, anyone can visit Crater of Diamonds State Park and dig for diamonds. The hunt begins atop a 37 ½ acre field of the ancient volcanic crater. The field is plowed once a month to help bring more diamonds to the surface. And if you are wondering if anyone ever gets lucky on their hunt, the answer is yes.
In recent news, a Louisiana man found a 2.89 carat white diamond at Crater of Diamonds State Park just this past week. And who could forget Tana Clymer’s big find in 2013. Tana found a 3.85 carat canary yellow diamond after only two hours of searching. To learn more about Craters of Diamonds State Park, visit their home page here.
