Scientists have just applied a Midas-like touch to the most common molecule on the Earth’s surface: water. In a new study, they were able to turn water into a metallic gold-colored substance for a few seconds, Nature reports. To do so, the researchers loaded a syringe with a liquid sodium-potassium alloy and slowly exposed a drop of it to water vapor. When the vapor condensed into a thin film around the drop, electrons from the metal diffused into the water and briefly gave it metallic properties, according to a study published this week in Nature.

Electrons from a droplet of sodium and potassium diffuse onto a thin layer of water, turning it golden and giving it metallic properties. Photo credit: Philip E Mason.

This article originally appeared in News of Nature of July 28, 2021.

Reference:

Mason PE, Schewe HC, Buttersack T, Kostal V, Vitek M, McMullen RS, Ali H, Trinter F, Lee C, Neumark DM, Thürmer S. (2021). Spectroscopic evidence for a gold-coloured metallic water solution. Nature. 595, 673–676. DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03646-5.

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