Neptune, Uranus' Diamond Oceans

Diamond glaciers floating in oceans of liquid diamond may be on Neptune and Uranus, according to new research. Though scientists had been able to melt diamonds before, they were unable to get detailed measurements until now. The findings were surprising: just like water, solid diamond floats on liquid diamond (usually the solid form of a substance is denser than the liquid, and therefore will sink). Neptune and Uranus have the ultra high pressures that could create liquid diamond, and the gas giants are both about 10 percent carbon. Diamond oceans could explain why the planets’ magnetic and geographic poles are in different spots—up to 60 degrees off the north-south axis. If Earth’s magnetic fields were that off, our north pole would be in Texas.