Neutron Star Crust: Strong Stuff

"Neutron Star Crust Is Stronger than Steel"
Space.com (May 18, 2009)

"Neutron stars are dead relics that have collapsed into very small, dense spheres with tough crusts. Forces welling from within can crack the crusts during events called star quakes, similar to earthquakes.

"The awesome power of those quakes can blast gamma rays into space, leading scientists to suspect that the stars' crusts must be very hard to break.

"A new study suggests how strong they are: The crust of neutron stars could be 10 billion times stronger than steel, based on an innovative model of elements compressed as tightly as they would be on the surface of a neutron star...."

This article comes under the category of information that's fascinating (to some), and which has very little practical application in our daily lives.

It's also a pretty good overview of conditions near the surface of neutron stars, with links to related articles.

Me? I enjoyed reading about another probe across the frontier of knowledge.