Diamonds may stud Mercury’s crust

Billions of years of impacts may have turned much of a graphite crust into precious gemstones

The surface of Mercury

A persistent barrage of meteorite impacts may have turned some of the surface of Mercury (pictured) into diamond, computer simulations suggest.

NASA, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington

A treasure trove of diamonds may be sown into Mercury’s cratered crust.