Water, which is shown as the source of life, has more than one form. Scientists doing research on water and its forms have discovered a new type of ice, which is the freezing state of water. Researchers at University College London and the University of Cambridge have discovered a new type of ice that is more liquid-like than any other ice we know.
This ice called MDA, which belongs to the amorphous ice type, is amorphous. In other words, its molecules are more irregular, like in water. In general, we see crystal ice with a regular structure on Earth. Amorphous ice type is actually known as the main type of ice that we encounter when we direct our head into space.
Cold environments such as space cause the thermal energy of ice to form crystals.
According to the study published in the journal Science, the research team added steel balls with ordinary ice to a metal jar cooled to -200 degrees Celsius and shaken vigorously. As a result of this process, called ball grinding, a different form of ice emerged.
Ice formed with the same density as liquid water.
As a result of this process, smaller ordinary pieces of ice would normally be expected, but instead formed an amorphous form of ice, similar to solid water with the same density as liquid water. Scientists; They named this new ice “Medium-ensity Amorphou (MDA)”.
This type of ice is actually one that is often found in space.
The research team stated that the tidal forces created by gas giants such as Jupiter and Saturn have an effect similar to this ball milling system. It has been suggested that this type of ice, which is more like a fine white powder, may also exist on the ice moons of the outer Solar System.
MDA can trigger ice earthquakes.
A special type of ice, MDA, can release an extraordinary amount of heat when reheated and crystallized. This causes tectonic movements and “ice earthquakes” on the ice cover of kilometers thick, as in Jupiter’s Ganymede moon.
We know of 20 crystalline ice forms, but research on amorphous ice types is scant.
Professor Christoph Salzmann at University College London said: “Water is the basis of all life. Our existence depends on it, we are launching space missions to look for it, but from a certain point of view it is fully understood. So far we know of 20 forms of crystalline ice, but we have previously known about high density and “Only two main types of amorphous ice, known as low-density amorphous ices, have been discovered. This discovery may have far-reaching implications for our understanding of liquid water and its many anomalies.” used his statements.
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