While we can’t go and study every planet in space one by one, scientists can predict conditions in different corners of space with various simulations. According to one of these theories, hydrogen and carbon atoms form diamonds kilometers above the surface of ice giants due to the high pressure and temperature in their atmospheres.
When oxygen was added to this mix, a new study found that diamond showers were more frequent than predicted. Moreover, such planets are thought to be abundant in the universe.
The diamond shower is pretty commonplace in the universe
Although the ice giants of the Solar System, Neptune and Uranus, draw attention with their different structures in our system, they are the most common planets in space, according to scientists. It is also possible to encounter ice giants in every corner of the galaxy. So there are lots of places we can look in space to find diamond precipitation.
German scientist Dominik Kraus, one of the authors of the study, said in a statement that they believe that there are deep, high-temperature liquid masses under the surface of the planet and that they think that the diamonds that come with the precipitations progress for 10 thousand kilometers and melt until this layer. Saying that these diamonds do not look like “beautiful gemstones on the rings”, the scientist said that the diamond layer on the surface can exceed hundreds of kilometers.
To test this theory, scientists exposed a structure containing carbon, hydrogen and oxygen to very short X-ray flashes at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in California. In the study, pet bottle was used as element source. In theory, using a coke bottle wouldn’t change the outcome, according to Kraus.
As a result of the study, it was determined that diamond structures in sizes that cannot be seen with the human eye appeared on the surface of the plastic bottle. It turned out that diamonds form more easily because oxygen molecules attract hydrogen from carbon molecules.
Thanks to this method, scientists believe that they have produced a new alternative to produce artificial diamonds, which are used in drug development, various treatment methods, medical devices and quantum electronics, and their areas of use are expanding and diversifying.
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