Researchers have discovered two new forms of salt ice that could change the fundamentals of chemistry forever. That’s quite a bold claim, I know, but based on the research showcased in a new paper featured in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, these two previously undiscovered forms of salt ice are going to shake things up quite a bit.
Salt and ice are two perfectly normal things and both exist on Earth in some fashion or another. But, there are other kinds of frozen water that exist in space. For example, Europa on Jupiter’s Moon. Scientists have found that the moon’s surface is coated in strange, watery ice. It has been difficult to understand why this wateriness exists.
But, with the discovery of these two new forms of salt ice, that mystery could become a learning opportunity. According to the research, when subjected to higher pressures and lower temperatures than are found on Earth, the atoms in hydrated sodium chloride – a fancy name for salt water ice – will arrange themselves in structures unlike anything scientists had previously discovered.
Scientists believe that this strange form of salt ice may be responsible for the watery-looking ice on moons such as Europa. Further, by studying the conditions needed to make this kind of salt water ice, scientists may be able to tell more about the atmospheres of planets and moons that are covered with this kind of material.
Therefore, the discovery has the possibility of changing some of our fundamentals of chemistry, as least as far as how hydrated sodium chloride reacts under pressure and colder temperatures. Normally salt works as a natural kind of antifreeze – that’s why some cities put salt on the roads before an icy storm. It lowers the freezing point of the water, allowing it to stay liquidy longer.
This same concept appears to be on display on Europa and other similar moons. This ability to see the two forms of salt-ice on Europa and other similar moons could open up new avenues for understanding our solar system and help us understand cosmic Ice .
With NASA already planning missions to Europa, and the JUNO spacecraft already returning stunning images of Europa captured by the spacecraft, perhaps having this information on hand could help scientists better prepare for a proper mission to explore the surface of the moon.
The post New forms of salt ice could change the fundamentals of chemistry appeared first on BGR.
