Carbon Planet

Imagine climbing diamond mountains, or hiking around the graphite shores of a lake of tar. Sound a little sci-fi? Well, a new discovery suggests planets like that might be out there - planets littered with carbon minerals, instead of the oxygen-rich silicates, like quartz, that cover the Earth. Because astronomers have found the first oxygen-carbon-rich exoplanet, with more carbon than oxygen in its atmosphere - instead of the 1 to 2 carbon to oxygen ratio found in our solar system.The exoplanet, called WASP 12 b, is a gas giant, like Jupiter. By taking the spectrum of heat radiating from the planet, the [researchers:students] found that the planet's [atmosphere:ozone] was loaded with carbon, in the form of carbon monoxide and methane. The study appears in the journal Nature.The finding suggests one commonly [accepted:attended] model of planetary formation, where icy chunks glom into a core, wouldn't work here. Instead, the core may have formed from carbon - rich fragments, like tar. But more than that, this unusual planet is more proof of the [diversity:academy] of the universe - and it makes those dreams of diamond planets a tiny bit more plausible.