Scientists have found that the skies of distant ice giants like Uranus and Neptune might experience diamond rain. Previous research on this idea had conflicting results, with some experiments requiring harsh conditions. However, a new study led by Dr. Mungo Frost from the SLAC research center in California used a different method, gradually squeezing a Styrofoam-like material with intense X-ray pulses.
This approach showed that diamonds could form at temperatures and pressures similar to those in the shallower regions of Uranus and Neptune. This discovery increases the likelihood of diamond rain on these planets and suggests it could play a role in shaping their internal structure and magnetic fields.
In addition, diamond rain would also be possible on gas planets that are smaller than Neptune and Uranus and are called "mini-Neptunes." Such planets do not exist in our solar system, but they do occur as exoplanets outside of it.
The research is published in the journal Nature Astronomy.
"The diamond rain probably has an influence on the formation of the complex magnetic fields of Uranus and Neptune," Dr Frost said.
As per a release, the international research team also includes scientists from European XFEL, the German research centers DESY in Hamburg and the Helmholtz Center Dresden-Rossendorf, as well as other research institutions and universities from different countries. The European XFEL user consortium HIBEF, involving the research centers HZDR and DESY, contributed significantly to this work.
"Through this international collaboration, we have made great progress at the European XFEL and gained remarkable new insights into icy planets," says Dr Frost.
