A newly created ice crystal could help researchers determine if life can be sustainable on other planets, according to the Daily Mail.
Using artificial conditions, professor Xiao Cheng Zeng of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and his team were able to cause water molecules to arrange themselves in a new way when forming an ice crystal.
They found that at extreme pressures the ice molecules form a clathrate, an interlocking "cage-like" structure not seen before on Earth. The clue could be crucial for scientists as the previously unknown ice formation could be present on other planets, seeing as how the pressures and temperatures could vary widely from Earth's.
"We performed a lot of calculations (focused on) whether this is not just a low-density ice, but perhaps the lowest-density ice to date," said Zeng. "If you think about it, the low density of natural ice protects the water below it. If it were denser, water would freeze from the bottom up and no living species could survive."
This new form of ice will be officially dubbed Ice XVII.
"Water and ice are forever interesting because they have such relevance to human beings and life," he added.
This new ice form is the second to be discovered since 2014. The research is published with the journal Science Advances.
