A. wraps B. poorly C. generating D. incomplete E. sufficient F. further G. Compressing H. heats I. uncertainty J. pressurize K. drowned |
Neptune Rains Diamonds, and Now We Might Finally Know How
Deep within the hearts of Neptune and Uranus, it could be raining diamonds. Now, scientists have produced new experimental evidence showing how this could be possible.
The hypothesis goes that the intense heat and pressure thousands of kilometres below the surface of these ice giants should split apart hydrocarbon compounds, with the carbon
The new experiment used the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory’s Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS)X-ray laser for the most precise measurements yet of how this “diamond rain” process should occur-and found that carbon transitions directly into crystalline diamond.
Neptune and Uranus are the most
The atmospheres of Neptune and Uranus are primarily made up of hydrogen and helium, with a small amount of methane. Below these atmospheric layers, a superhot, superdense fluid of “icy” materials such as water, methane, and ammonia
And calculations and experiments dating back decades have shown that, with
A previous experiment led by physicist Dominik Kraus used X-ray diffraction to demonstrate it. Now Kraus and his team have taken their research a step
It’s challenging to replicate the interiors of giant planets here on Earth. The first step is to heat and
In the previous experiment, X-ray diffraction(衍射)was used to then probe the material. This works well for materials with crystalline structures, but less so with non-crystalline molecules, so the picture was
This allowed them not just to observe the conversion of carbon into diamond, but also what happens to the rest of the sample-it splits off into hydrogen. And there’s pretty much no leftover carbon.