Zyklon-A
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Potassium on Pluto
Here, it says ''Pluto contains potassium under its surface.''
Does that mean elemental potassium, or compounds? The rest of the 'planet' is made of solid N2, CO, and Ar from the radioactive decay of potassium-40,
there is also some ice (H2O), but amazingly, potassium does not react with ice, so theoretically it could exist, maybe, right?
[Edited on 3-1-2014 by Zyklonb]
[Edited on 3-1-2014 by Zyklonb]
[Edited on 3-1-2014 by Zyklonb]
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Random
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It would probably eventually react to something.
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Zyklon-A
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With what?
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Random
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Solid H2O for example. Reactions do happen in solid state but occur much slower. Or eventually it would heat up so much from solid state reaction to a
liquid. Or maybe if it's really so cold to preserve and stop this but I find it unlikely. It's too reactive. We also don't see much natural iron here
either.
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blogfast25
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Not elemental K, of course. See here:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21128303.900-plutos-ic...
"Now Guillaume Robuchon and Francis Nimmo at the University of California, Santa Cruz, say there is a good chance it does. They calculate that an
ocean depends on two things: the amount of radioactive potassium in Pluto's rocky core, and the sloshiness of the ice that covers it.
Density measurements suggest a rocky core fills 40 per cent of the dwarf planet's volume. If the core contains potassium at a concentration of 75
parts per billion, its decay could produce enough heat to melt some of the overlying ice, which is made of a mixture of nitrogen and water."
[Edited on 3-1-2014 by blogfast25]
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Zyklon-A
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I don't think it could heat up to liquefy H2O, but I guess the reaction might precede, just very slowly. Also there is't much H2O there anyway,
without an O2 atmosphere some very strange/exotic things can happen.
Edit: @blogfast25, Oh well, I guess I was wrong, it would have been cool though, not that it would be possible to get it of course.
[Edited on 3-1-2014 by Zyklonb]
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DraconicAcid
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Quote: Originally posted by Zyklonb  | Here, it says ''Pluto contains potassium under its surface.''
Does that mean elemental potassium, or compounds? The rest of the 'planet' is made of solid N2, CO, and Ar from the radioactive decay of potassium-40,
there is also some ice (H2O), but amazingly, potassium does not react with ice, so theoretically it could exist, maybe, right? |
That's weird- any time I've chucked a piece of potassium into a snowbank, regardless of the temperature, it's reacted immediately. Nice purple
flames, no explosion.
I'm sure that potassium, even on Pluto, will find something that it can react with.
Please remember: "Filtrate" is not a verb.
Write up your lab reports the way your instructor wants them, not the way your ex-instructor wants them.
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blogfast25
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zyklon:
Not as cool as a diamond star:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/3492919.stm
Calculate the carats on that one!
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Zyklon-A
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Ya, I have a book called The Cosmos, that says if a very big star collapses it can form either a black hole (unlikely), or a diamond (more likely).
Again, too bad we can't get to it.
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DraconicAcid
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Even if we could get to it, trying to lift a piece small enough to use as jewellry out of that kind of gravity well....
Please remember: "Filtrate" is not a verb.
Write up your lab reports the way your instructor wants them, not the way your ex-instructor wants them.
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Zyklon-A
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It would be super dense, and very hard/impossible to break a chunk off, but for the sake of science..... no still not worth it.
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Zyklon-A
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@DraconicAcid, "That's weird- any time I've chucked a piece of potassium into a snowbank, regardless of the temperature, it's reacted immediately.''
I don't know, I've never tried K on ice, only seen the clip shown in the link, his ice looked like it was very cold, maybe he put it in liquid
nitrogen? It still would not matter though because the ice on pluto would be even colder.
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metalresearcher
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Planet Mercury: Sodium and Oxygen in thin atmosphere ?
According to Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_%28planet%29
| Quote: |
Atmosphere:
Surface pressure trace
Composition
42% Molecular oxygen
29.0% sodium
22.0% hydrogen
6.0% helium
0.5% potassium
Trace amounts of argon, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, water vapor, xenon, krypton, and neon.
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Oxygen and Na in the atmosphere even at such low pressures can that be together ? This would immediately react especially at the temperatures over 300
C occurring on the planet, and the planet would be a bright yellow star in the sky like a remote sodium vapor lamp.
[Edited on 2014-1-29 by metalresearcher]
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blogfast25
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| Quote: Originally posted by metalresearcher | This would immediately react especially at the temperatures over 300 C occurring on the planet, and the planet would be a bright yellow star in the
sky like a remote sodium vapor lamp.
[Edited on 2014-1-29 by metalresearcher] |
Sodium lamps are gas discharge lamps: w/o the electric current there's no light. And 300 C is too low to get emission spectra.
Also, '% sodium' does not imply 'as elemental sodium'.
[Edited on 29-1-2014 by blogfast25]
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thebean
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Earth has sodium in it's crust, but it's not free elemental sodium. I'm guessing the same for Mercury.
"You need a little bit of insanity to do great things."
-Henry Rollins
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bfesser
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29-1-2014 at 10:26 |
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