Science of Diamonds
Does It Rain Diamonds on Saturn? Astronomers Reveal the Truth
By Dr. Abhijeet Borkar, Updated: September 18, 2025
It may sound fantastical, but science shows us that across the universe, entire stars can crystallize into diamonds and some planets experience the extraordinary phenomenon of diamond rain.
According to myths, when natural diamonds were first discovered in India centuries ago, strewn about on the fields after thunderstorms, people assumed that they were divine blessings. As the years passed, we grew to realise that natural diamonds didn’t actually rain down from the skies. They were, in fact, created deep in the heart of Earth under tremendous heat and pressure.
But what if we told you the age-old question, “Does it rain diamonds on Saturn?” has a surprising answer. In fact, scientists now believe it’s literally raining diamonds on Saturn and other parts outside of earthly realms. Would you believe us if we told you that diamonds quite literally stud the sky?
Meet the Expert
- Abhijeet Borkar, Ph.D. is an Astrophysicist & Post-Doctoral Researcher at the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague.
- With over 12 years of research experience in astrophysics, Dr. Borkar specializes in the study of white dwarfs, pulsars, and stellar evolution.
How Saturn’s Storms Create Diamond Rain
For centuries, astronomers have been captivated by Saturn, often described as the jewel of our solar system and one of its most breathtaking planets. While her iconic rings have long mesmerized us, the bigger wonder lies in the question, “Does it rain diamonds on Saturn?” Thanks to atmospheric data discovered in 2012, scientists now know the answer is yes—and the phenomenon is even more dazzling than we imagined.
With carbon so abundant on the gas giant Saturn, powerful lightning storms transform methane into soot, which hardens into chunks of graphite as it falls. Under immense pressure, that graphite crystallizes into rare diamonds, answering the question: Does it rain diamonds on Saturn? with an enthusiastic yes!
These glittering “diamond hailstones,” about a centimeter across, eventually plunge into Saturn’s scorching core, where they melt into a shimmering liquid sea. For a brief moment, though, Saturn is showered with gems dazzling enough to rival anything a celebrity might covet.
Does It Rain Diamonds on Saturn Every Year? The Numbers Explained
How often does it rain diamonds on Saturn, and just how many are formed? Scientists estimate that roughly 1,000 tons of diamonds fall each year on the gas giant. To put that in perspective, the Aikhal mine in Russia—one of the largest natural diamond mines on Earth—holds about 175.56 million carats of proven and probable diamonds. Compared to the planet’s endless diamond showers, even Earth’s richest mines seem modest by comparison.
Jupiter: Oceans of Liquid Diamond
As studies show, while natural diamonds are rare on Earth, they’re far more common across the universe than we once imagined. These extraterrestrial diamonds aren’t limited to planets—they’ve also been found in stars and meteorites.
Take Jupiter, for example. Much like Saturn, this massive gas giant is believed to experience diamond rain. At the greatest depths of its atmosphere, the pressure and temperature are so extreme that the gems don’t just fall as hailstones—they may actually merge into vast oceans of liquid diamond.
Uranus and Neptune: Diamonds That Never Melt
In addition to Saturn and Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune have also been famed for their diamond-studded skies. In fact, it was in 1981 that scientist Marvin Ross first proposed that diamonds might form on these icy giants.
We know that the atmospheres of Neptune and Uranus are primarily made up of hydrogen and helium, with a small amount of methane. But what might seem surprising is that below these atmospheric layers lies a superhot, superdense fluid of water, methane, and ammonia. It is within this exotic material that their famed diamonds are created. Unlike Jupiter and Saturn, however, the cores of Uranus and Neptune are much cooler—so the high temperatures that cause diamonds to melt are never reached. As a result, the diamonds on Neptune and Uranus may never melt at all.
A Planet Made of Diamonds: 55 Cancri e
In 2004 astronomers chanced upon one exoplanet in a galaxy nearby that seemed to be straight out of science fiction. The 55 Cancri e, 40.12 light years away from us might be just twice the size of Earth, but it has eight times its mass. The reason? It’s allegedly made mostly of precious diamonds! Zooming around its star in just 18 hours, its surface has a temperature of nearly 2,700 degrees Celsius. Which is perhaps just about right for an abundance of diamonds!
According to NASA, the value of the planet has been theorized to be around a whopping $26.9 nonillion! Compared to it, The World Bank’s estimate of Earth’s GDP appears to be measly at $70 trillion!
A Star Made of Diamonds: Lucy, the White Dwarf
And as this planet, along with five others, orbits around the main sequence star, some stars in the universe adorn the sky with an unmistakable sparkle that diamond aficionados know only too well.
Identified initially as V886 Centauri or BPM 37093, Lucy, the white dwarf, is about 4,000 kms across and is possibly the largest natural diamond anyone has ever seen. At a staggering 10 billion trillion trillion carats, it shone so brightly that it could be seen from the constellation Centaurus, almost fifty light-years away from us.
Lucy might be the first of her kind, but she isn’t the only one. The 11-million-year-old PSR J2222-0137 spotted almost 900 light-years away is much larger than Lucy. Theorised to possibly be older than the Milky Way galaxy, this star, along with many others like it, proves that in some parts of our universe, diamonds are indeed forever.
