N. O. Sorokhtin is a geologist and academician of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences and has participated in over 20 major geological expeditions and author of more than 100 scientific publications, including six monographs. He is a co-author of The Evolution of Earth's Climate, also available from Wiley-Scrivener.

• Foreword xiIntroduction xii1 Major Parameters of Diamond-Bearing and Affine Rocks 12 Issues of the Diamond-Bearing Rocks’ Origin 73 Existing Concepts of the Diamond-Bearing Rocks Origin 114 Earth’s Origin, Composition and Structure 194.1 Energy and Heat Regimes of Young Earth 334.2 The Gadeyan Stage of Earth’s Evolution 355 The Earth’s Core Formation Process 415.1 Delayed Earth’s Core Separation Process 415.2 Earth’s Core Separation 455.3 Mechanism of Earth’s Matter Zonal Differentiation 505.4 Earth’s Matter Barodiffusion Differentiation 635.5 Earth’s Core Growth 755.6 Evolution of the Mantle Chemical Composition 825.7 Geologic Data About Earth’s Core Separation Time 936 Earth’s Energy Balance 1036.1 The Accretion and Differentiation Earth’s Energy 1046.2 Radioactive Elements and their Decay Energy 1106.3 Earth’s Deceleration Tidal Energy 1236.4 Earth’s Heat Losses 1296.5 Earth’s Energy Balance and Tectonic Activity 1346.6 Сalculation Parameters of Earth’s Tectonic Activity 1386.7 Convecting Mantle Temperature Evolution 1417 The Nature of Earth’s Tectonic Activity 1457.1 Possible Causes of Earth’s Tectonic Activity 1457.2 Possible Mechanisms of Lithospheric Plates Drift 1497.3 The Nature of the Mantle Convection 1567.4 Evolution of Earth’s Tectonic Activity Parameters 1718 Earth’s Crust Evolution 1758.1 Patterns in the Formation of Oceanic Lithospheric Plates 1758.2 Formation of the Continental Crust in Archaean 1818.3 The Continental Crust Growth 1858.4 Major Features in the Composition of the Continental Crust in Archaean 1908.5 Tectonic Regimes of the Continental Lithosphere Formation in Early Precambrian 1968.6 Early Pre-Cambrian Continental Lithosphere Formation Mechanisms 2018.7 Formation Mechanism of Lithospheric Plates and the Origin of Mid-Oceanic Ridges 2198.8 Structure of Lithospheric Plate Subduction Zones 2318.9 Geodynamics of the Plate Subduction Zones 2378.10 The Mechanism of Pulling Oceanic Deposits in Subduction Zones 2409 Continental Drift in Earth’s Geological History 2499.1 Continental Shields’ Evolution in Archaean 2499.2 Formation of Monogea Supercontinent at the End Archaean 2529.3 Monogea Disintegration and the Formation of Megagea Supercontinent in Early Proterozoic 2549.4 Disintegration of Megagea and Formation of Mesogea (Rodinia) Supercontinent in Middle Riphaean 2589.5 Mesogea Disintegration in Late Riphaean and Formation of Pangea Supercontinent at the End Paleozoic – Early Mesozoic 26310 Mantle Degassing and the Formation of Earth’s Hydrosphere and Atmosphere 27110.1 The Primary Mantle Degassing 27110.2 Seas and Oceans Formation on Earth Surface 27510.3 Hydrothermal Processes on the Ocean Floor 28210.4 The Nature of Global Marine Transgressions on Continents 28910.5 Earth’s Tectonic Activity vs. Fluctuations of the World Ocean Level 29110.6 Earth’s Primordial Atmosphere 29410.7 Evolution of the Degassing Process of Carbon Dioxide Gas 29510.8 Evolution of Nitrogen Partial Pressure 30310.9 Evolution of Oxygen’s Partial Pressure 30710.10 Abiogenous Methane Generation Patterns 31210.11 The Evolution of Earth Atmosphere Composition and Pressure 32111 Some Patterns of Economic Minerals’ Formation in Earth’s History 32511.1 Mechanisms of Riftogenic Earth’s Crust Benefication with Ore and Lithophilic Elements 32611.2 The Subduction Zone Metallogeny 33011.3 Metallogeny of Early Stage in Earth Evolution and the Nature of a Unique Early Proterozoic Ore Formation Epoch 35611.4 The Influence of the Ocean and of Earth Climates on the Formation of Sedimentary Commercial Minerals in Early Proterozoic, the Major Iron Ore Accumulation Epoch 36112 Diamond Origin and the Formation of Kimberlite and their Affine Rocks 36913 Carbon’s Depth Cycle 39714 Isotopic Geochemistry of Diamonds and Kimberlites 41115 Kimberlite Magma Rise Mechanism to Earth’s Surface 43316 The Forecast Criteria of Diamond Magmatism Localization Zones and the Evolution of Some Diamond-Bearing Provinces 44316.1 Some Formation Examples of World Diamond-Bearing Provinces 44516.2 Geodynamical Evolution of the Western Part of the Russian Arctic and its Diamond-Bearing 45016.3 The Zoning of Alkali-Ultramafic and Kimberlite Magmatism Localization Areas in the Northeastern Part of the Baltic Shield 470Conclusions 477References 483Index 509