Water exists in two different liquids

Water is an essential life force for humanity and our planet. But there's much we have still to learn about the fateful combination of Hydrogen and Oxygen atoms that comprises this near-magical substance. Now a new study proves water can have two different liquid states, in one of its most unusual properties.

What the new study showed is that at low temperatures of around -63°C, water can be found in two states: a low-density liquid at low pressures, and a high-density liquid at high pressures.

The research, carried out by an international team of researchers, involved sophisticated experiments with x-ray lasers and computer simulations.

Researchers were able to X-ray unimaginably fast, before the water froze, and could observe how one liquid transformed to the other

They found that the difference in density between the two liquids was about 20%. A thin interface would form, given the right conditions, to separate the two kinds of water without mixing them. A similar phenomenon to what you observe when oil and water are combined.

The scientists think their find can affect a variety of scientific and engineering uses of water. It remains an open question how the presence of two liquids may affect the behavior of aqueous solutions in general, and in particular, how the two liquids may affect biomolecules in aqueous environments.