Diamond Rain!

On Uranus & Neptune, it rains… diamonds?!?!!

You might think that it only rains diamonds in fairy tales or movies, but it turns out that it actually rains diamonds on Uranus and Neptune! These diamonds fall towards the cores of these planets! These diamonds are not the size of ring diamonds, they are the size of BOULDERS!!!!

How Does this Happen?

How in the universe does this happen? First, you need to understand that the atmospheres of these planets are made of slushy, heavy, icey gases. Some of these gases are methane, hydrogen, and carbon. Because of the weight of the ice and slush, the core of the planets are 8,540°F! That’s enough heat to cook 100,000 pizzas in a few seconds! This is caused by the pressure of the ice and slush. When the material carbon gets under intense pressure, it starts to crystallize into diamonds. On Earth, diamonds are also made of carbon put under intense pressure. These diamonds are the size of boulders because they from over millions of years.

NOTE: To learn more, check out our episode about Uranus!