Homemade door latch from scrap metal.

Iron curls in the center of the Earth and even in our blood. This metal also resides in mysteries such as the lost irons of Earth and ancient Chinese potters creating a rare variant that no modern laboratory can do.

Iron's reputation may be boring, but it manifests spectacularly in strange places, from tiny balls on bird heads to underground rivers of molten metal. Iron can also behave strangely, turning the fruit purple and even making precious metals behave as if they were platinum.

10. A Tip for Life

Oxygen is key to life on Earth, and understanding its origins can reveal how life began. One of the biggest mysteries in this field happened 2.5.2.4 billion years ago.

Without explanation, oxygen levels began to rise. The best hope for clues came from Western Australia. The region has Banded Iron Formations that date back to times when the atmosphere was rich in oxygen.

Iron ore may contain sulfur isotopes. The chemistry of the particles can act as a progress report. In this case, they can provide a clear picture of the earliest evolution of oxygen. Previous research has shown that the East Pilbara has an older history of volcanism and that the growth of volcanoes may contribute to the formation of an oxygen-rich atmosphere.

Unfortunately, the isotopes are deep underground and out of reach for the average scientist. If a mining company can drill down for samples, the cores could reveal a full story of how an oxygen-free world became increasingly ready for life.

9. Purple Orange

In 2018, an Australian woman sliced an orange and within hours, the fruit had mysteriously developed purple spots. Along with the strange wedges she brushed, the knife she used was taken to a lab. When the researchers heard that the woman's husband had sharpened the knife a day or two ago, they also took the steel sharpener.

It looks like the dual vehicles were locked. Tests on funky berries have shown that the spots are the result of a reaction between iron and a pigment called anthocyanin.

The pigment is naturally found in oranges and the iron comes from the newly sharpened blade. Despite the owner rinsing the blade with water, an excess of microscopic metal fragments was left behind. They turned orange when cut. Chemical reactions are likely to be heightened by the cold temperatures after the family has placed the wedges in the refrigerator.

8. Why Do Hands Smell Like Money?

Coins tend to leave an odor on our fingers. In 2006, German researchers found that the metallic odor does not come from small changes. Instead, they realized it was produced by human skin.

The study allowed seven volunteers to deal with iron-containing objects. The group reported that his hands smelled of metal, and gas samples from his skin isolated the origin of the odor. It is a molecule called 1-octane-2-one. This organic compound is formed when skin oils are broken down.

Apparently, after touching an iron object, perspiration adds two electrons to each iron atom. This makes the iron atoms doubly negative, and their reaction with skin oils causes the latter to decompose. The result is 1-octane-2-one molecule. What we smell does not come from a coin, but from some kind of body odor.

7. Iron Volcanoes

Space volcanoes behave strangely. For example, there are planets with cryovolcanoes that come out with water instead of lava. In 2019, a scientific paper suggested an unknown brand of volcanism. Although there are no iron volcanoes on Earth, it's possible that metallic asteroids in our solar system were once in them.

The solar system is too cold for asteroids to contain molten metal these days, but billions of years ago things were different. Some asteroids started out as minor planets. 10 Most Interesting Facts About Iron Collisions have robbed the liquid metal cores of planetesimals. As the latter solidified, the process led to the inclusion of temporary volcanism at the surface.

Interestingly, if the eruptions cast pure iron, it looked different from what Earthlings were used to. Instead of viscous lava flowing in thick formations, iron spreads in thin layers of low viscosity. To confirm the possibility of such volcanoes, scientists would need to look at a metallic asteroid. NASA plans to launch a spacecraft in 2022 to investigate Psyche, the largest of the group. Evidence of iron volcanoes will have to wait a few years, as the ship will only arrive in 2026.

6. An Iron River

In recent years, three satellites have found a strange feature. Designed to study the planet's magnetic field, the trio was tracking unusual magnetic flux lobes below Siberia and Alaska. It soon became clear that the lobes were in motion. The reason was remarkable.

Magnetic lobes being pushed towards Europe by a great iron river