Ultra-high pressure and ultra-reduced minerals in ophiolites may form by lightning strikes

Since ultra-high pressure (UHP) minerals have been discovered in ophiolites from Tibet and the Polar Urals, it is speculated that the mantle sections of ophiolites may originate deep within the mantle. The UHP minerals are frequently found together with ultra-reduced silicides, carbides, and nitrides. Consequently, it is argued that the deep mantle, or at least domains within it, must be highly reduced, so reduced that practically all transition elements at depth are present in the metallic state. We find it problematic to rewrite the history of ophiolite complexes based on these observations and suggest we should search for alternative and more realistic modes of origin. Electric discharge experiments at >6000 K reported here show that the UHP and highly reduced phase assemblages may precipitate from plasmas. We argue that the mineral assemblages may originate by lightning strikes. As such, they may not record the origin and emplacement history of the mantle lithologies within which they occur.