Close Menu
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest YouTube LinkedIn TikTok
    TopBuzzMagazine.com
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest YouTube LinkedIn TikTok
    • Home
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Music
    • Fashion
    • Books
    • Science
    • Technology
    • Cover Story
    • Contact
      • About
      • Amazon Disclaimer
      • Terms and Conditions
      • Privacy Policy
      • DMCA / Copyrights Disclaimer
    TopBuzzMagazine.com
    Home»Science»Rare primordial gas may be leaking out of Earth’s core
    Science

    Rare primordial gas may be leaking out of Earth’s core

    By AdminApril 23, 2022
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

    An extremely rare type of helium that was created soon after the Big Bang is leaking out of Earth’s metallic core, a new modeling study suggests. 

    The vast majority of this gas in the universe, called helium-3, is primordial and was created just after the Big Bang occurred about 13.8 billion years ago. Some of this helium-3 would have joined other gas and dust particles in the solar nebula — the vast, spinning and collapsed cloud that is thought to have led to the creation of the solar system. 

    The discovery that Earth’s core likely contains a vast reservoir of helium-3 is further evidence to support the idea that Earth formed inside a thriving solar nebula, not on its periphery or during its waning phase, the researchers said.

    Helium-3 is “a wonder of nature, and a clue for the history of the Earth, that there’s still a significant amount of this isotope in the interior of the Earth,” study lead author Peter Olson, a geophysicist at the University of New Mexico, said in a statement.

    Related: Why do the planets in the solar system orbit on the same plane?

    Helium-3 is an isotope, or variant, of helium that has one neutron instead of the usual two in its nucleus. It’s a rare gas, making up just 0.0001% of helium on Earth. It comes from various processes, such as the radioactive decay of tritium, a rare radioactive isotope of hydrogen. But because helium is one of the earliest elements to exist in the universe, most helium-3 likely came from the Big Bang.

    Scientists already knew that about 4.4 pounds (2 kilograms) of helium-3 escapes from Earth’s interior annually, mostly along the mid-ocean ridge system where tectonic plates meet, the researchers wrote in the study, published online March 28 in the journal Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems. 

    This is “about enough to fill a balloon the size of your desk,” Olson said.

    But scientists weren’t sure exactly how much of the  helium-3 came from the core versus the mantle, and how much helium-3 was in Earth’s reservoirs.

    This image taken by Hubble Telescope shows Lagoon Nebula. After the Big Bang, large quantities of the rare gas helium-3 were made, and these gas particles became part of nebulas, one of which later gave rise to our solar system. The amount of helium-3 leaking from Earth’s metallic core indicates that our planet formed inside a nebula with high helium-3 concentrations. (Image credit: NASA/ESA)

    To investigate, the research team modeled helium abundance during two important phases of Earth’s history: the planet’s early formation, when it was still accumulating helium, and after the formation of the moon, when our planet lost a lot of this gas. Scientists think that the moon formed when a colossal object about the size of Mars collided with Earth about 4 billion years ago. 

    This event would have melted Earth’s crust and enabled much of the helium inside our planet to escape.

    However, Earth didn’t lose all of its helium-3 at that time. It still retains some of the rare gas, which continues to seep out of Earth’s innards. The core would be a good place for such a reservoir, “because it is less vulnerable to large impacts compared to other parts of the Earth system,” the researchers wrote in the study, and it is not involved in tectonic plate cycling, which also releases helium gas.

    The researchers coupled the modern helium-3 leak rate with models of helium isotope behavior. These calculations revealed that between 22 billion pounds (10 teragrams) to 2 trillion pounds (1 pentagram) of helium-3 are hanging out in Earth’s core — an enormous amount, indicating that Earth formed in a solar nebula with high concentrations of the gas.

    Their models of gas exchange “exchange during Earth’s formation and evolution implicate the metallic core as a leaky reservoir that supplies the rest of the Earth with helium-3,” the researchers wrote in the study.

    However, because these results are based on modeling, the results aren’t ironclad. The team had to make a number of assumptions — for example that Earth took on helium-3 as it formed in the solar nebula, that helium entered into core-forming metals and that some helium left the core for the mantle. These assumptions, in addition to other uncertainties, including how long the solar nebula lasted relative to the rate at which Earth formed, mean that there may be less helium-3 in the core than they calculated, the scientists said.

    But the researchers hope to find more clues that support their findings. For instance, finding other nebula-created gases, such as hydrogen, that are leaking from Earth from similar spots and at similar rates as helium-3, could be a “smoking gun” showing that the core is the source, Olson said. “There are many more mysteries than certainties.”

    Originally published on Live Science.

    Read The Full Article Here

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

    Related Posts

    Wildfire forces evacuation of part of Grand Canyon

    July 11, 2025

    1,600-year-old tomb of Maya city’s first ruler unearthed in Belize

    July 11, 2025

    Peculiar plant could help us reconstruct ancient Earth’s climate

    July 10, 2025

    Chemicals from turmeric and rhubarb could help fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria lurking in wastewater

    July 10, 2025

    Metformin may prevent severe morning sickness

    July 9, 2025

    Herpes virus could soon be approved to treat severe skin cancer

    July 9, 2025
    popular posts

    ‘Embryo Models’ Challenge the Legal, Ethical, and Biological Concepts of

    9 Facts No One Tells a Bride Before They Step

    Frank, Funny & Poignant Memoir of Living with Chronic Disease

    Parker Posey Shares Thoughts on Stepping Into Tales of the

    Colleen Hoover Meets “Fifty Shades” in Steamy Billionaire Romance About

    Stay Right Where (And When) You Are: 10 Books About

    Contaminants of emerging concern impact fish health in Minnesota waters

    Categories
    • Books (3,281)
    • Cover Story (4)
    • Events (18)
    • Fashion (2,446)
    • Interviews (43)
    • Movies (2,580)
    • Music (2,858)
    • News (155)
    • Politics (1)
    • Science (4,430)
    • Technology (2,573)
    • Television (3,303)
    • Uncategorized (932)
    Archives
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest YouTube Reddit TikTok
    © 2025 Top Buzz Magazine. All rights reserved. All articles, images, product names, logos, and brands are property of their respective owners. All company, product and service names used in this website are for identification purposes only. Use of these names, logos, and brands does not imply endorsement unless specified. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
    Do not sell my personal information.
    Cookie SettingsAccept
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
    viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
    Functional
    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
    Performance
    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    SAVE & ACCEPT