Ice on Mercury may Form at Scorching Temperatures
Ice on Mercury, the closest planet to the Sun, may seem impossible. But, could scorching temperatures on that world help form ice?
The scorching surface of Mercury, where temperatures can reach 400 degrees Celsius (750 Fahrenheit), may seem to be the last place astronomers might find ice. However, this enormous heat could play a significant role in the formation of ice on Mercury, a new study reveals.
Many astronomers believe that most of the water on the Mercury was likely delivered to the surface of that diminutive world by asteroids. Within the polar craters of Mercury, ice could stay frozen in eternal darkness.
“Water ice on the surface of Mercury is exposed directly to vacuum, and will rapidly sublime [turn directly from solid to vapor] and escape into space unless it is kept cold at all times. This implies that the ice can never be exposed to direct sunlight. The only locations on the surface of Mercury where this is possible would seem to be near the poles, where the floors of some craters might be deep enough to afford permanent shading,” David Williams of the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center explained in 2012.
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