Surprisingly, Mercury, the closest planet to the sun, which can reach daytime temperatures of 430 degrees C (about 800 degrees F), has ice! Kristen discusses research describing a newly-discovered mechanism for water formation and freezing on Mercury.

References and Resources

• Primary Literature: A New In Situ Quasi-continuous Solar-wind Source of Molecular Water on Mercury
• • https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/ab6bda
• Articles
• • Science Daily: Mercury's scorching daytime heat may help it make its own ice at caps
  • • https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/03/200313155329.htm
  • The Daily Galaxy: “Vulcan Heat” –Mercury’s Gigantic Ice-Making Paradox
  • • https://dailygalaxy.com/2020/03/vulcan-heat-mercurys-gigantic-ice-making-paradox/
  • NASA Science: Mercury
  • • https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/mercury/in-depth/
  • Nova: The Ninth Planet That Wasn't
  • • https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/hunt-for-vulcan/

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Check out Kristen’s other show, Headshake, a stream-of-consciousness science podcast (EXPLICIT CONTENT):

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