It may sound like a story straight out of the lurid pulp sci fi novels of the 1950s and 1960s, but this story is all too true: a new planet named 55 Cancri e is made mostly of diamonds.
The 55 Cancri solar system is located a mere 40 light years from our own, and it is extremely rich in carbon. It is part of the constellation of Cancer, and is visible with the naked eye on a clear night.
55 Cancri e is the innermost planet, zipping around its star at a surprising clip, with a solar year that is a mere 18 hours long. This close to its sun, the surface temperatures of the planet average around 3,900 degrees Fahrenheit. 55 Cancri e is twice as big around as Earth, and has eight times the mass. The immense pressures and high temperatures mean that 55 Cancri e has converted an estimated third of its mass into diamond.
It would not be an easy matter to mine 55 Cancri e, even if we overcame the hurdle of faster-than-light travel. The surface temperatures are hot enough to melt metal, and it is constantly bathed in intense solar radiation that would make it impossible for a life form (like ourselves) to get near the planet.
