Untouched water as old as 2.6 billion years is found: Don't drink it

I remember making water in Chemistry at school- It wasn't difficult.

Just put some hydrogen in a test tube and light it with a taper. After the tiny "explosion" in the test tube you'll see a couple of drops of water.

Has anyone else noticed that your bottled water that has been trickling through the mountains for thousands of years has a "best before" date on it?

reply to post by snarky412


So how old is the rest of the water on the planet? Is "new" water showing up anywhere? How is water made anyway? I know it is one hydrogen molecule and two oxygen molecules but what actually combines them ? It used to be thought that water was fairly rare in the universe but now we know that it is plentiful throughout the cosmos.

reply to post by snarky412


So how old is the rest of the water on the planet? Is "new" water showing up anywhere? How is water made anyway? I know it is one hydrogen molecule and two oxygen molecules but what actually combines them ? It used to be thought that water was fairly rare in the universe but now we know that it is plentiful throughout the cosmos.

reply to post by snarky412


So how old is the rest of the water on the planet? Is "new" water showing up anywhere? How is water made anyway? I know it is one hydrogen molecule and two oxygen molecules but what actually combines them ? It used to be thought that water was fairly rare in the universe but now we know that it is plentiful throughout the cosmos.

Water on other worlds has new meanings now!
if this was in a cave to start with.
would it have had life by now?

I dont think so.
you need bacteria from space.
or space seeding.

reply to post by karen61560


Being as the Earth is estimated at 4.5 billion yrs. old, give or take a mil [the exact age of Earth is difficult to determine], I suppose what the scientists are excited about is this is the oldest water found to date...

Each time they find a new discovery, it either adds or takes away from theories/speculations by scientists about Mother Earth.

Of course, you'll have some people question and dispute their findings.

Ten most common elements in the Milky Way Galaxy estimated spectroscopically ( [1] Z, Element, Mass, fraction in parts per million)

Water is 2 H (#1) combusted with heat release, with 1 O (#3) -

So it's gotta be pretty common since Helium cannot react chemically with anything and Carbon does not bear the potential energy reaction with Hydrogen that Oxygen has.

Water is a natural outcome.

Abundancy Ranking by Element

1 Hydrogen 739,000
2 Helium 240,000
8 Oxygen 10,400
6 Carbon 4,600
10 Neon 1,340
26 Iron 1,090
7 Nitrogen 960
14 Silicon 650
12 Magnesium 580
16 Sulfur 440

If I set out plans to conquer/defend the Galaxy I would base my ruthless army on Hydrogen, Oxygen and Carbon - and make them very small so that their presence could not be easily observed.

I know, crazy idea.

Originally posted by muzzleflash

Water cannot form unless a ton of energy aids the process (to our best understanding).

The oxygenation of hydrogen (i.e., burning) to create water is highly exothermic. That means that much more energy is released in the reaction than is required to start it. NASA uses this reaction to send rockets to space.

Our Earth science so far cannot replicate water in the laboratory yet within any reasonable cost effective manner.

It depends on what you call reasonable. Hydrogen can be extracted from water fairly cheaply using soybeans and molybdenum metal. The hydrogen can be burned freely in plain air or with oxygen easily snatched and stored with low-cost oxygen concentrators.

In any event, I not sure why any scientist would want to replicate (synthesize) water in a lab. It's not like water is hard to find.

Originally posted by iunlimited491
Very cool. S&F.

Anybody care for a quick swim?

_____

Your link isn't working for me though.
(page not found)

Go to the original linked provided in the OP and on the LA Times page, just copy/paste this title into their search bar, it should take you there, I just tried it.

Originally posted by muzzleflash
Water doesn't just form or decay like they are implying.

Just because it turns to vapor or back into water or is filtered a thousand times, it is still in fact the same water it was before.

Where did all the water come from to begin with? Ice asteroids is one of my favorite theories, but there are other possibilities.

Maybe this is the oldest known "isolated water", but as far as we know all the water on Earth is actually the same age. There is no way to date a water molecule with reasonable accuracy that we are aware of at our primitive technological level.

I content this water no older than the water I drink everyday.
Would be cool to be disproved but I have my doubts.

I think its just poorly-worded. I'm fairly certain they mean the water has been locked away, not cycled through Earth's systems the way most water is, for that long. So it is impressive compared to the water which was recently rained down on the ocean off the coast of Chile, which was then inside a Sea Bass, which was eaten by a guy at Pappadeaux in Westmont, Illinois, who later urinated into Lake Michigan, where the very same waterthat fell as rain off the coast of Chile entered the water treatment facility in Chicago, traveled through pipes to my home, circulated through my RO filtration, amd then was gladly chugged down as a refreshing beverage in the heat today.

I'd drink that water before I drink my tap water tbh. Isolated from human contamination. If only it had a current.

Originally posted by Shadoefax

In any event, I not sure why any scientist would want to replicate (synthesize) water in a lab. It's not like water is hard to find.

So that we don't have to ship any to other planets for the future colony.

By being able to cheaply make H2O with base elements, which are usually quite abundant in space, would significantly increase the ability for us to create self-sufficient expansions into the stars.

reply to post by dogstar23

So it is impressive compared to the water which was recently rained down on the ocean off the coast of Chile, which was then inside a Sea Bass, which was eaten by a guy at Pappadeaux in Westmont, Illinois, who later urinated into Lake Michigan, where the very same waterthat fell as rain off the coast of Chile entered the water treatment facility in Chicago, traveled through pipes to my home, circulated through my RO filtration, amd then was gladly chugged down as a refreshing beverage in the heat today.

^^^Yeah, what he just said.......

Now if that isn't a scientific explanation, then I don't know what is!!
Thanks for the chuckle