A new study by Washington State University researchers answers longstanding questions about the formation of a rare type of diamond during major meteorite strikes.

Hexagonal diamond or lonsdaleite is harder than the type of diamond worn on an engagement ring and is thought to be naturally made when large, graphite-bearing meteorites slam into Earth.

Scientists have puzzled over the exact pressure and other conditions needed to make hexagonal diamond since its discovery in an Arizona meteorite fragment half a century ago. » More …