Earthquakes Can Turn Water Into Gold

Deep within the Earth's crust, a kind of geological Midas touch is at work. Fault zones are not empty cracks; they are complex networks filled with superheated water, rich with dissolved minerals like silica and, in small quantities, gold. Under immense pressure, this water remains in a liquid state far above its normal boiling point. When an earthquake strikes, the fault suddenly shifts and opens up voids. This causes a dramatic and instantaneous drop in pressure, forcing the superheated water to flash into vapor.

This rapid vaporization is the key to forming gold deposits. Just as sugar crystallizes from cooling water, the newly formed steam can no longer hold onto its dissolved minerals. The gold and silica precipitate almost instantly, crystallizing onto the surrounding rock surfaces. A single earthquake deposits only a minuscule film of gold, far too small to be of any value. However, this process repeated over millions of years in the same fault system can build up significant accumulations. This violent alchemy is responsible for many of the world's lode gold deposits, which are often found within the quartz veins that were formed by the very same process.