Diamonds on Mercury

September 01, 2024 

According to a new theory proposed by scientists, Mercury, our solar system’s smallest planet, may have a thick layer of diamonds within its surface. This layer is believed to be between the planet’s core and mantle and is approximately 14kms thick. For their study, scientists used information from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry and Ranging (MESSENGER) mission and simulated Mercury’s interior structure. Scientists earlier assumed that the planet had a magma ocean, which created a graphite layer within the planet’s surface. However, the new study found that the layer might be a diamond layer.

DID YOU KNOW?
Mercury takes only 88 days to revolve around the sun as it is the closest planet to the sun.