Jupiter, Saturn Harbor Liquid Metal Helium

Jupiter, Saturn Harbor Liquid Metal Helium

I am still amazed by what we discover on a daily basis. The search for life is not the only thing we can all benefit from. I am sure this discovery will lead to more incredible finds as time goes on.

A strange, metal brew lies buried deep within Jupiter and Saturn, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and in London.
The study, published in this week's online edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, demonstrates that metallic helium is less rare than was previously thought and is produced under the kinds of conditions present at the centers of giant, gaseous planets, mixing with metal hydrogen and forming a liquid metal alloy.

Scientists recently discovered that hydrogen metalizes under lower temperatures and pressures than was previously appreciated. The dogma in the field was that the characteristics of hydrogen and helium were different enough that the two wouldn't mix inside giant gaseous planets, Jeanloz said. The researchers' findings, however, indicate that the two elements probably do mix, forming a metal alloy like brass, but liquid.
This finding also speaks to one of the many mysteries of these large planets, Stixrude said. More energy is emitted from Jupiter and Saturn than they absorb from the sun, and scientists don't understand where it comes from. One of the prevailing theories is that droplets of helium condense out
of the planets' outer atmospheres and fall to their centers as "helium
rain," releasing gravitational energy. But Jeanloz and Stixrude's findings show that helium and hydrogen are probably a more homogenous mix than was previously suspected, meaning that helium rain is unlikely.
"Now, we have to look elsewhere for this energy source," Stixrude said.