Answer 1:
Not directly.
Emerald is a form of the mineral
beryl, which contains beryllium,
aluminum, oxygen, and silicon. Beryllium is a
fairly rare element because it is destroyed,
not created, in stars, which is why beryl is a
rare mineral and all of its varieties are also
gemstones (others being aquamarine, morganite, and
heliodor).
Emerald is most commonly found in
slow-cooling granites, rocks that crystallize
from magma kilometers below the surface while
volcanoes erupt above them. These can happen where
continents collide with each-other, but more
often when a continental plate collides with an
ocean plate , instead of another continental
plate. This is happening today in places like the
Cascades, Japan, Java, the Andes, and many other
places. Because the Earth's tectonic plates move
and because of erosion, the place where emeralds
are found now tell you where these volcanic arcs
were in the past, not where they are today.
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Answer 2:
Emeralds often form when rocks have been
baked at high temperatures or squeezed to high
pressures. When two continents collide then
that produces a lot of pressure, which can help
form emeralds.
So there are emerald mines in places like
Afghanistan where continents have collided. But
emeralds can also form in other places as well,
such as with other minerals which crystallize
inside an empty space under rock. Click Here to return to the search form.
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