A diamond shower. You did read that correctly. And yes, some of the planets in our solar system do experience diamond rain. And certainly, at least for the time being, we can’t access them at all.
According to a recent study, diamond rains on planets occur more frequently than previously believed and are accelerated by oxygen, opening up a potential route for the production of nanodiamonds on Earth.
Researchers came to the conclusion that ice giant planets may experience this unusual rainfall more frequently than previously anticipated.
Scientists from the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have discovered the presence of oxygen, which makes diamond formation more likely, as they investigated the process that more closely resembles the chemical makeup of Neptune and Uranus.
According to a study that was recently published in the journal Science Advances, the harsh environments found inside ice giants like Uranus and Neptune can cause strange chemical and structural changes like the precipitation of diamonds or superionic water.
The study offers a more detailed picture of how diamond rain develops on other worlds and may suggest a new method for creating nanodiamonds on Earth.