A Geekly blog for all things awesome. And stuff.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
A Girls Best... Planet?
The biggest diamond in the 'verse just got a whole lot bigger - think planet-sized.
Australian astronomers have discovered a planet they think is made of diamond.
And we're stuck on a planet of mud, water, and lava. *sigh*
It could be as large as 5 times as large as the diameter of Earth, and is currently orbiting a dead, spinning star, known as a pulsar, 4000 light-years away.
CSIRO astronomer Michael Keith said the planet was likely to be very hot and glowing white.
"It would probably look very pretty," he said.
It was found by an international team led by Matthew Bailes of Swinburne University in Melbourne, and its density made it likely it comprise mostly of carbon atoms, crushed together in a crystalline structure "very similar to diamond."
The pulsar, and the diamond planet have been designated PSR J1719-1438 - a pretty boring name for a planet made of diamonds.
I think Diamondia sounds good.
Labels:
Big,
Diamond,
Expensive,
Planet,
REALLY BIG
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