Diamonds reveal deep source of platinum deposits
Wednesday, June 11, 2008 - 12:42
in Paleontology & Archaeology
The world's richest source of platinum and related metals is an enigmatic geological structure in South Africa known as the Bushveld Complex. This complex of ancient magmas is known to have formed some two billion years ago, but the source of its metallic riches has been a matter of scientific dispute. Now researchers from the Carnegie Institution and the University of Cape Town have traced the origin of the unique ore deposits by using another of South Africa's treasures—diamonds.