kimberlite

American  

[kim-ber-lahyt] / ˈkɪm bərˌlaɪt /

noun

1. Petrology. a variety of micaceous peridotite, low in silica content and high in magnesium content, in which diamonds are formed.

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kimberlite British  

/ ˈkɪmbəˌlaɪt /

noun

1. an intrusive igneous rock generated at great depth in the earth's mantle and consisting largely of olivine and phlogopite. It often contains diamonds

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kimberlite Scientific  

/ kĭm′bər-līt′ /

1. A type of peridotite consisting of a fine-grained matrix of calcite and olivine and containing phenocrysts of olivine, garnet, and sometimes diamonds. Kimberlites are found in long, vertical volcanic pipes, especially in South Africa.

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Etymology

Origin of kimberlite

1885–90; named after Kimberley, South Africa; see -ite ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

kimberlite

Researchers have identified buried kimberlite, the rocky home of diamonds, by testing the DNA of microbes in the surface soil.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2023

Using these 'indicator' microbes and their DNA sequences, the team tested the surface soil at an exploration site in the Northwest Territories where kimberlite had previously been confirmed through drilling.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2023

They found that over the last 500 million years, there is a pattern where the plates start to pull apart, then 22 million to 30 million years later, kimberlite eruptions peak.

From Scientific American ● Aug. 21, 2023

To solve this mystery, Dr. Gernon and his team analyzed statistical correlations between continental breakups and kimberlite blasts during the last billion years.

From New York Times ● Jul. 26, 2023

We also know a little bit about the mantle from what are known as kimberlite pipes, where diamonds are formed.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson