How Water Forms in Interstellar Space at 10K

KentuckyFC writes "Water is the most abundant solid material in space. But although astronomers see it on planets, moons, in comets and in interstellar clouds, nobody has been able to show how it forms. In theory, it should form easily when oxygen and atomic hydrogen meet. The problem is that there is not enough of it floating around as gas in interstellar dust clouds. So instead, the thinking is that water must form when atomic hydrogen interacts with frozen solid oxygen on the surface of dust grains in these clouds. Now Japanese astronomers have demonstrated this process for the first time in the lab in conditions that simulate interstellar space. That's cool because all the water in the solar system, including almost every drop you drink on Earth today, must have formed in exactly this way more than 5 billion years ago in a pre-solar dustcloud (abstract)."

Re:5 billion years ago ?

[Anonymous Coward]

Isn't the universe like 6000 years old?

Blasphemy!!

Yrs. truly,

Richard Dawkins

Water, Water, Every Where

[Anonymous Coward]

Nor any drop to drink

Re:Am I the only person?

[Ferzerp]

I think this is just an evil plot to get us all downmodded -1 redundant ;)

We all replied with the same thing within seconds of one another.

The parent of your post knew the answer, and knew we'd all correct him at the same time!

Re:5 billion years ago ?

[Thanshin]

The more we learn, the more obvious it becomes that life, far from being a unique or rare thing in the universe, is actually an inevitable natural process, and will consistently and repeatedly erupt under environmental conditions that are actually very common across the universe.

The known theory of Dupe'R'Us.

That explains it

[cmacb]

I knew my tap water tasted funny.

How water forms

[suso]

You don't have to try it figure it out. God just creates it. No scientific explaination needed. Now wasn't that easy.

All water?

[teslar]

That's cool because all the water in the solar system, including almost every drop you drink on Earth today

So, what are the drops of water that are not included in the "almost every drop" made of? :)

Re:5 billion years ago ?

[boneclinkz]

When will people realize that it is okay to be a young earth Creationist and still believe in science. The Darwinists have things mostly right, it's just that God created the Universe 6000 years ago and made it APPEAR to be much older. Time, as we observe it, is directly controlled by God and as such he can manipulate it to be anything He wills.

both scenarios are true

[circletimessquare]

but the interstellar dustcloud waterchild concept wins hollywood glamor points, while your more reasonable point of view is mundane and humdrum

it is a facet of scientific theory formation known as michael bayification: the more dramatic and trippy the theory, the more likely it is to spread in the popular press, and therefore to gain more traction in the minds of the average joe

"5 billion interstellar dustcloud water" is just so cool sounding man. while your point of view is full of zzz

so c'mon, get with the program, your ideas are just so drab. perhaps if you redescribed your theory as it would appear being mumbled by a secret military organization figurehead in a big budget disaster movie. make believe you are a 23 year old hollywood script writer perusing wikipedia in forming your scientific mumbo jumbo

repeat after me: "hyperplanetary accretion disc catalysis"

or "gravity well coupled reverse electrolysis"

there you go, now we are playing in the big leagues of science-theory-by-public-relations-ad-copy-writer

Re:5 billion years ago ?

[TheMeuge]

So far we have ONLY found life on one planet-- a planet that has liquid water, a single moon relatively large compared to the planet's mass, active volcanic and tectonic activity, a strong magnetosphere, and an active weather system.

While we have theorized that not all of those are needed, the truth is that we haven't found so much as a single primitive cell anywhere else. And we haven't found one single location in the entire universe with all five save for our home planet.

You sound like a seasoned explorer of space, who has spent countless years braving the depths of interstellar space, visited hundreds of remote star systems, only to be faced with disappointment time after time.

I really feel for you.

/sarcasm

The kind of a claim you're making is even more of a hyperbole than claiming that there are no mexicans working in the kitchens of New York City restaurants, because you haven't seen one in Dubai.

Re:And the next question will be....

[kmcrober]

Pedant, not pendant. A "pendant" is a piece of jewelry or some other hanging object. A "pedant" is the sort of person who corrects someone who mistakenly writes "pendant" when they mean "pedant."