Superionic Ice

Researchers at Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics used the same set-up at the recent study to create superionic ice, shown here in this artistic rendering. In that instance, the ice was not stable. (Image credit: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory illustration / Millot, Coppari, Hamel, Krauss)

Scientists just squeezed a water droplet between two diamonds and blasted it to star-like temperatures with one of the world's most powerful lasers. The result was a new and mysterious phase of water.

Called superionic ice, the "strange, black" water exists under the same pressures and temperatures as those at the center of Earth — a fact that could soon help researchers investigate the secrets buried inside the cores of other worlds.

Previously, researchers used shock waves to create this weird ice for just 20 nanoseconds before it dissolved. This new experiment marks the first time that scientists have created stable superionic ice that lasts long enough to be studied in detail. The researchers published their findings Oct. 14 in the journal Nature Physics.  TO READ MORE ABOUT THIS, CLICK HERE...