Bizarre ‘hot ice’ that stays frozen at 2,700C created by scientists – and could solve mystery of icy Uranus and Neptune
Th hot ice substance remains frozen at the same temperature as the Sun and can be found on Uranus and Neptune
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HOT ice that can remain frozen at thousands of degrees of heat has been created by scientists.
One of the most powerful lasers on the planet was used to make the bizarre creation, which could teach us more about the structure of giant ice planets like Uranus and Neptune.
Scientists from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory used a range of lasers to drive large concentrations of shockwaves towards a small quantity of water.
The pressure from these shockwaves compressed and heated the water sample, which forced it to freeze into a heated 'superionic' water ice phase.
It is thought that this hot ice substance makes up large parts of icy planets, where similar processes occur naturally underneath the surface.
Superionic water ice was first predicted to exist in 1998 and the researchers who took part in this recent study wanted to find out the atomic structure of the unusual substance.
In other news, physicists recently discovered a bizarre new form of matter that is not a solid, liquid or gas.
Scientists think that watery ‘Super Earths’ may hide ‘unfathomably deep’ bottomless oceans.
And, Nasa is aiming to send the next man and the first woman to the icy South Pole of the moon by 2024.
Are you impressed by the existence of a hot ice substance? Let us know in the comments...
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