THREE POTENTIAL EXPLANATIONS

Scientists have considered how lonsdaleite forms

Forming under high pressure

Lonsdaleite can form over billions of years when there are high pressures and temperatures. In 2020, however, scientists in Australia also created lonsdaleite in a lab by applying high pressures of

100 gigapascals at normal room temperature.

Shock caused by a collision

When a graphitebearing meteorite collides with Earth, it causes a highenergy shock wave. In theory, this converts graphite into small diamonds while retaining the graphite's hexagonal structure, making lonsdaleite a potential defected diamond.

It occurs naturally in ureilites

According to the study by Tomkins, lonsdaleite has been found in ureilite meteorites formed in the mantle of a dwarf planet 4.5 billion years ago. Graphite on the planet was turned into lonsdaleite thanks to a chemical reaction sparked by an asteroid collision.