image: Crystal structure of iron in Earth's inner core. Experiments by Tateno et al. revealed that iron adopts hexagonal-closed-packed structure at ultrahigh-press and temperature conditions corresponding to the Earth's inner core, the deepest portion of our planet. This image relates to an article that appeared in the Oct. 15, 2010, issue of Science, published by AAAS. The study, by Dr. Shigehiko Tateno of the Tokyo Institute of Technology in Tokyo, Japan, and colleagues was titled, "The Structure of Iron in Earth’s Inner Core." view more
Credit: Image courtesy of Shigehiko Tateno