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A smattering of asteroids in oursolar systemare so dense that no chemical element on Earth can explain their property . alternatively , they may be made of naturally occurring " superheavy element " beyond those heel in theperiodic table — our current best catalog of 118 chemical element — fresh enquiry paint a picture .
" Ifasteroidsdo indeed incorporate superheavy elements , it would open legion questions surrounding how these elements were forge and why we have not discovered them outside of asteroids yet , " study atomic number 27 - authorJohann Rafelski , a physical science prof at the University of Arizona , told Live Science .
An illustration of an asteroid belt
Immensely labored blank rock , known as compact ultra dense object ( CUDOs ) , are typically heavier than osmium , the weighty naturally come about element on Earth . One such rock ‘n’ roll is 33 Polyhymnia , located in the principal asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter . scientist have long been dumbfound by its density , as the 34 - mile - wide ( 55 kilometers ) object does not have the mass need to twitch mineral into ultradense forms . However , its makeup has been difficult to pin down , thanks to its small sizing and immense aloofness from Earth .
Previous research indicate that the denseness of CUDOs like 33 Polyhymnia could be explained if the objects werefilledwith inscrutable dark matter particles that perhaps do not exist as freely distribute speck but rather inconglomerations within asteroids . Now , in a study published Sept. 15 in theThe European Physical Journal Plus , Rafelski and two colleagues mathematically demonstrated that the existence of CUDOs can be explain not with dark matter , but with unidentified classes of chemical elements beyond the periodic board that are much denser than osmium .
scientist have long debated whether elements heavier than oganesson , the last one in the periodical table , could occur naturally and be static . Such superheavy elements are highly radioactive and decay within milliseconds , thanks to standoff among the high act of proton bundle in their cell nucleus .
former worksuggestedthere is a theoretical region of the periodical board term an " island of constancy " of superheavy element around atomic telephone number 164 . At this weight , elements might not undergo speedy radioactive decay and would be for short periods of time . New calculation by Rafelski and his team fit with this prediction .
" All super - enceinte element — those that are highly precarious as well as those that are just unseen — have been lumped together as ' unobtainium , ' " Rafelski said in astatement . " The idea that some of these might be stable enough to be get from within oursolar systemis an exciting one . "
To get in at their conclusion , the researcher theorized the atomic body structure of hypothetical superheavy element using a rude theoretical account of an atom know as the Thomas - Fermi theoretical account . They bump that elements with nuclear number near 164 would have a density somewhere between 36 and 68.4 grams per cubic centimeter ( 20 and 39.5 ounces per three-dimensional inch ) .
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— occasional Table of Elements
This grasp is closelipped to the deliberate density of 75.28 gram per cubic centimeter ( 43.5 apothecaries' ounce per cubic in ) for 33 Polyhymnia . The results paint a picture that superheavy elements , if they really survive , could explain the monumental density seen in the space rock and others similar to it , although blue matter can not be in full ruled out as a potential resident physician within ultradense asteroids .
" What is especially exciting about this work is that we do not know exactly where this will run , " Rafelski tell Live Science .
