For the first time see rock formations

Scientists have just observed the formation of ice crystals in the atmosphere. This phenomenon of forming clouds has never been directly seen before.

The process - called the snow core - occurs when a molecule absorbs water vapor and forms ice crystals. Then, it will become the core of the cirrus clouds (cirrus cloud - a type of cloud characterized by thin strips, similar to grasping or grabbing hair or hair; usually accompanied by bun or bunch). These clouds, we often see in the sky on cloudy days.

Direct observation of the phenomenon of rock formation through a microscope is not easy. But this is an extremely important process, letting the scientists know about the shape of clouds and how they soothe or heat our planet.

"The phenomenon of forming cold clouds is an extremely necessary scientific knowledge, but now we know too little about it. The secret of the development of stone molecules has been discovered, but the moment How the group of molecules join together, is still a big challenge , " said Bingbing Wang, a member of the Pacific Northwest National Library research team.

In order to recreate this process in the laboratory, the team of scientists must build the status quo, just like on the upper floor of the Earth's surface. Because the clouds are formed in the sky at a height of about 6 km, compared to the sea level.

The phenomenon of rock formation has never been seen before.(Photo: Pacific Northwest National Library).

At this height, the humidity is relatively high and the temperature is extremely low. That means, the steam is always in a ready state to condense into small particles. The particles will float in the atmosphere, before freezing in a place like a deposited rock.

In the atmosphere, small particles floating in the air can be anything. They can be volcanic ash dust, aircraft emissions, even bacteria.

To recreate the snow core in the laboratory, the scientists used the particles of clay minerals, called kaolinite. These particles are very small, only 2 - 3 micrometres in size, even smaller than 1/10 of the width of human hair.

The team placed kaolinite in a box the size of a poppy seed. The box is tightly controlled and photographed with a scanning electron microscope.

This microscope can capture details with very high resolution. It can also record the formation of ice crystals, although the width of particles is only 50 nanometers, approximately 1/1000 of a human hair width.

In experiments with kaolinite and tests with particles made of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen; The research team has achieved many positive results. The team found that snow kernels are formed at temperatures of about 205 degrees Kelvin and have a relative humidity of 70-80%.

Although there have been many studies of snow kernels before, this is the first time, researchers have observed the formation of ice crystals from tiny particles at first.

"We can control the formation of ice crystals minute by minute, thanks to scanning electron microscopes that have resolution to nanometers and similar conditions in the atmosphere. We have recreated the process of precision, little by little, leading to the event that rocks were formed, able to observe directly with the eyes, " said one member of the group - atmospheric chemist Daniel. Knopt, Stony Brook University said.

"We are extremely excited with this amazing achievement. This is a great step for the scientific community to have more far-reaching understanding, about the formation of stone clouds, " he added.

Clouds are blocks of condensate droplets or crystalline ice suspended in the atmosphere above the Earth (or on the surface of other planets).

Condensed steam forms small droplets (typically 0.01mm) or ice crystals along with billions of water droplets or other small ice crystals, forming clouds that humans can see. Cloud refraction is equivalent to all wavelengths of visible light, so the cloud is white. But we can also see clouds that are gray or blue, if they are too thick or too thick because light cannot pass through.