The World's First Nuclear Explosion Forged an 'Impossible' Crystal

Scientists found a previously unknown calcium copper silicate type-I clathrate in red trinitite from the 1945 Trinity test in New Mexico.

The crystal was confirmed with crystallography, alongside other unusual blast-formed phases such as a quasicrystal.

The discovery shows nuclear detonations can create rare mineral structures that are hard or impossible to make under normal conditions.

It also gives researchers a new record of the extreme heat and pressure produced by the first atomic bomb test.