Scientists have discovered a new phase of ice that is not found anywhere on Earth. When the Europa Clipper mission arrives at a moon far from Jupiter, it will look for sources of water, which is thought to be present under the surface in the form of ice. Ahead of its launch, scientists have discovered a new form of ice, which may exist in this distant world.
According to a report in India Today, scientists studying the properties of water under high pressure have discovered a new phase called Ice-VIIT, a tetragonal phase between Ice-VII and ICE-X which is a cubic phase. is in the middle of the phase. Scientists said it is unlikely they will find this unique phase anywhere on Earth’s surface, but it could be a common component in Earth as well as large moons and water-rich planets outside our solar system.
A laser-heating technique was then used on the ice to temporarily melt the small crystals before they became a powder. “By increasing the pressure and periodically blasting it with a laser beam, the team observed that water ice was forming from a known cubic phase, Ice-VII, into the newly discovered ice,” the team said in a statement.
By squeezing a sample of water between these diamonds, the scientists moved oxygen and hydrogen atoms into several different arrangements, including the newly discovered arrangement, Ice-VIIT. The research not only helped discover a new phase of ice, but also showed that the transition to ICE-X occurred at about three times lower pressure than previously thought. This happened in about 3 lakh atmospheres as compared to 10 lakh atmospheres.
PHD. The study, led by University of Nevada Las Vegas student Zach Grande, helps to understand the behavior of water, which may be present in the interior of distant planets.