Science highlight
Oct. 2026. Nice surprise this week, our work was highlighted in Science magazine!
Science magazine highlighted our work in its issue for 22 October 2026!
Last August, we published a Physical Review B paper led by our colleague Zuzana Konôpková at the European XFEL and Eric Edmund, formerly at the Earth & Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Science, which was a result of a community experiment led by S. Merkel as the ERC HotCore project was just starting some time ago: Observation of body-centered cubic iron above 200 gigapascals. The paper shows that by using an uncommon kinetic and pressure-temperature path, one can form a cubic phase of iron under Earth's core pressures and temperatures. The paper was turned down by several high-profile journals and took a while to publish. Actually, at some points, we did wonder if it would come out.
Nice surprise this week: our paper attracted a lot of attention and was picked up for a news story by the prestigious Science magazine! In his article, Paul Voosen, Earth & Planetary Science Reporter at Science magazine, describes our work and its reception by the community. Read on for in-depth news: Iron at Earth’s heart may take a surprising form.