The Drybones Bay kimberlite pipe is a diamondiferous diatreme in the Slave craton of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is the largest diatreme discovered in the Northwest Territories. [1]
Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. At room temperature and pressure, another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form, but diamond almost never converts to it. Diamond has the highest hardness and thermal conductivity of any natural material, properties that are utilized in major industrial applications such as cutting and polishing tools. They are also the reason that diamond anvil cells can subject materials to pressures found deep in the Earth.
A diatreme, sometimes known as a maar-diatreme volcano, is a volcanic pipe formed by a gaseous explosion. When magma rises up through a crack in the Earth's crust and makes contact with a shallow body of ground water, rapid expansion of heated water vapor and volcanic gases can cause a series of explosions. A relatively shallow crater is left and a rock filled fracture in the Earth's crust. Diatremes breach the Earth's surface and produce a steep inverted cone shape.
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately 1,144,000 km2 (442,000 sq mi) and a 2016 census population of 41,786, it is the second-largest and the most populous of the three territories in Northern Canada. Its estimated population as of 2018 is 44,445. Yellowknife became the territorial capital in 1967, following recommendations by the Carrothers Commission.
Volcanology of Canada includes lava flows, lava plateaus, lava domes, cinder cones, stratovolcanoes, shield volcanoes, submarine volcanoes, calderas, diatremes, and maars, along with examples of more less common volcanic forms such as tuyas and subglacial mounds. It has a very complex volcanological history spanning from the Precambrian eon at least 3.11 billion years ago when this part of the North American continent began to form.
Volcanology of Northern Canada includes hundreds of volcanic areas and extensive lava formations across Northern Canada. The region's different volcano and lava types originate from different tectonic settings and types of volcanic eruptions, ranging from passive lava eruptions to violent explosive eruptions. Northern Canada has a record of very large volumes of magmatic rock called large igneous provinces. They are represented by deep-level plumbing systems consisting of giant dike swarms, sill provinces and layered intrusions.
The Gahcho Kué kimberlite pipes is a cluster of Cambrian kimberlite diatremes located 280 km (174 mi) northeast of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. It consists of four pipes: 5034, Hearne, Tuzo and Tesla.
The Elwin Bay diatreme, also called the Elwin Bay kimberlite, is a small post-Silurian diatreme located approximately 1 km (0.62 mi) south of Elwin Bay at the eastern margin of Somerset Island, Nunavut, Canada. It has a diameter of 200 m (656 ft).
The Phoenix pipe is a diatreme associated with the Birch Mountains kimberlite field in northern Alberta, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 75 million years ago when this part of Alberta was volcanically active during the Late Cretaceous period.
The Valkyrie pipe is a diatreme in northern Alberta, Canada. It is associated with a group of diatremes called the Birch Mountains kimberlite field which is thought to have formed about 75 million years ago when this part of Alberta was volcanically active during the Late Cretaceous period.
The Jericho pipe is a diamondiferous diatreme in the Slave craton of Nunavut, Canada, located 400 km (249 mi) northeast of Yellowknife near the northern end of Contwoyto Lake. It is home to the now closed Jericho Diamond Mine.
The JD-03 pipe is a kimberlite diatreme in Nunavut, Canada, located 7 km (4 mi) from the Jericho Diamond Mine. It was discovered in 1996 and is interpreted to be pyroclastic with intense serpentinization.
The Legend pipe is a diatreme associated with the Birch Mountains kimberlite field in northern Alberta, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 75 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous period.
The Xena pipe is a diatreme associated with the Birch Mountains kimberlite field in northern Alberta, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 75 million years ago when this part of Alberta was volcanically active during the Late Cretaceous period.
The Dragon pipe is a diatreme associated with the Birch Mountains kimberlite field in northern Alberta, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 75 million years ago when this part of Alberta was volcanically active during the Late Cretaceous period.
The Birch Mountains kimberlite field is a cluster of kimberlitic volcanic pipes or diatremes in north-central Alberta, Canada that were emplaced during a period of kimberlitic volcanism in the Late Cretaceous epoch. As of 2011, 8 diatremes had been discovered in the field, and diamonds and microdiamononds had been recovered during sampling programs.
The Misery Kimberlite Complex is a diatreme cluster in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was formed approximately 56 million years ago by several overlapping explosive eruptions and intrusions. All seem to have been structurally controlled by zones of weakness related with faults, dikes and a major contact in the Archean basement. The Misery Kimberlite Complex is associated with a field of diamondiferous kimberlites called the Lac de Gras kimberlite field.
The Aristifats Diatreme is a diatreme in the Northwest Territories, Canada, located about 100 km (62 mi) east of Yellowknife. It is thought to have formed about 1850 million years ago with the eruption of pyroclastic breccia.
The Kendu pipe is a diatreme associated with the Birch Mountains kimberlite field in northern Alberta, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 75 million years ago when this part of Alberta was volcanically active during the Late Cretaceous period.
K6 pipe is a diamondiferous diatreme in the Buffalo Head Hills kimberlite field of Northern Alberta, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 85 million years ago when is part of Alberta was volcanically active during the Late Cretaceous period. It is typical of melts that originated from the low mantle.
K252 pipe is a diamondiferous diatreme in the Buffalo Head Hills kimberlite field of Northern Alberta, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 85 million years ago when this part of Alberta was volcanically active during the Late Cretaceous period. It contains pyroclastic textures and is intruded into Cenomanian and Albian aged strata.
K19 pipe is a diatreme in the southwestern part of the Buffalo Head Hills kimberlite field in Northern Alberta, Canada. It is thought to have formed about 60 million years ago, making it one of the youngest volcanic formations in the Buffalo Head Hills kimberlite field and in Alberta. Unlike many other diatremes in the Buffalo Head Hills kimberlite field, it contains low diamond content.
The Lac de Gras kimberlite field is a group of Late Cretaceous to Eocene age diatremes in the Northwest Territories, Canada.
Volcanology of Western Canada includes lava flows, lava plateaus, lava domes, cinder cones, stratovolcanoes, shield volcanoes, greenstone belts, submarine volcanoes, calderas, diatremes and maars, along with examples of more less common volcanic forms such as tuyas and subglacial mounds.
The Igwisi Hills are a volcanic field in Tanzania. Three tuff cones are found there, one of which is associated with a lava flow. They are one of the few locations of possibly kimberlitic lava flows on Earth.
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