Mercury burns at 430 degree Celsius, scientists discover it has ice: Study

A new study suggests that planet Mercury is burning at 430 degree celcius and scientists have also found ice produced by the extreme heat received by Mercury from the Sun while revolving around it. As per the study, the daytime temperatures on the planet can reach upto 430°Celsius.

A team from the Georgia Institute of Technology explained that the phenomenon is not unheard of before. Chemist Brant Jones, Georgia Georgia Tech's REVEAL lab’s co-investigator said, "the basic chemical mechanism has been observed dozens of times in studies since the late 1960s."

READ: 300 'minor Planets' Discovered In Solar System Beyond Neptune

Formation of ice on Mercury 

As per the study, the formation of ice on Mercury due to the Sun’s heat is a part of a continuous water formation process on the planet. It is caused due to the minerals present in the planet's surface soil and the process is called as recombinative desorption (RD). 

According to the study,  the process also explains how the metal oxides present in the soil minerals are bombarded with charged proton particles that come along with the solar wind. It results in the formation of bound hydroxyls, molecular hydrogen, and water. The research is published on the ‘Astrophysical Journal Letters’  suggests that the phenomenon can easily account for 10 percent of Mercury’s total ice. 

READ: 'For A Healthier Planet...': PM Modi Thanks All For Suggesting Ways To Fight COVID-19

300 'minor Planets' Discovered 

On the other hand, in a recent discovery, the bizzare existence of new planets in our solar system was put forward. In what looks like 'minor planets', researchers projected the presence of trans-Neptunian objects, objects found beyond Neptune along with many other discoveries.

 Already deemed otherworldly, solar system is an amazing place with bizarre and phenomenal objects and the possibility of new discoveries goes on and on. As published in the Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series, a new revolutionary technique has been suggested in order to carry out the study of other celestial objects, alongside the discovery of the ninth planet and other new planets. 

Data collected from The Dark Energy Survey (DES), has led to researchers pointing out to the existence of not one or two or a dozen, but over 300 new planets located in the faraway areas of the huge solar system, including a 100 new other discoveries. Not only that, it has been projected that there could be a possible existence of even more planets. The study was accomplished by graduate student, Pedro Bernardinelli and professors, Gary Bernstein and Masao Sako. 

READ: New Planet Discovered With Temperature Exceeding 2,400 Celsius

READ: Astronomy Student Discovers 17 Exoplanets, Including A Potentially Habitable One
(Pic Credit: Pixabay)