Tiny 'Soccer Ball' Space Molecules Could Equal 10,000 Mount Everests | Buckyballs in Space & Space Molecules | Spitzer Space Telescope & Carbon BuckyBalls in Space

NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has detected the solid form of buckyballs in space for the first time. To form a solid particle, the buckyballs must stack together, as illustrated in this artist's concept showing the very beginnings of the process. The buckyball particles were spotted around a small, hot star -- a member of a pair of stars, called XX Ophiuchi, located 6,500 light-years from Earth. CREDIT: NASA/JPL-Caltech View full size image

For the first time, astronomers have discovered the solid form of tiny carbon spheres in deep space inside a vast cloud of particles locked in orbit around two distant stars.

The carbon spheres, known as buckyballs, are formed from 60 carbon atoms linked together to form a hollow sphere, "like a soccer ball," NASA announced in a statement today (Feb. 22). Astronomers spotted vast quantities of the tiny space balls, enough to create 10,000 Mount Everests, circling a pair of stars 6,500 light-years from Earth.

"These buckyballs are stacked together to form a solid, like oranges in a crate," said [...]

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Full article at space.com

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