Raining Diamonds
by James Temple
Title
Raining Diamonds
Artist
James Temple
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
SpaceDaily reproted: Berkeley - October 1, 1999 - If experiments at the University of California, Berkeley, are any indication, future explorers of our solar system may well find diamonds hailing down through the atmospheres of Neptune and Uranus. These planets contain a high proportion of methane, which UC Berkeley researchers have now shown can turn into diamonds at the high temperatures and pressures found inside these planets. Once these diamonds form, they fall like raindrops toward the center of the planet. The Berkeley team, led by Benedetti and Raymond Jeanloz, professor of geology and geophysics, produced these conditions inside a diamond anvil cell, squeezing liquid methane to several hundred thousand times atmospheric pressure. When they focused a laser beam on the pressurized liquid, heating it to some 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit, diamond dust appeared. They reported their experimental findings in a paper in the Oct.1 issue of Science. The demonstration that methane can convert to diamonds as well as other complex hydrocarbons in the interiors of giant planets like Neptune hint at a complex chemistry inside gaseous planets. Read the article for yourself at: http://www.spacedaily.com/news/carbon-99d.html. Parts of this image use NASA photos and are copyright free.
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July 6th, 2010
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Viewed 3,288 Times - Last Visitor from Beverly Hills, CA on 03/28/2024 at 7:38 PM
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Comments (28)
Laurel Adams
James, this is MAGNIFICENT!...LOVE the backstory...so why don’t they out the cows to work? I wouldn’t mind adding one or two of your stellar diamonds to my collection!...v...LF....best to you!
Sharon Eng
Very creative. I just saw a science show this week that spoke of the diamond rain possible on the icy giants. You've created a beautiful image based on that.
Aimelle ML
Great unique artwork and imagination James! I guess they wouldn't worth the same, but it would be beautiful to see, as your piece is :)
James Temple replied:
Thank you Aimelle for your comment. I love to find a story and illustrate it, it challenges my creative side.