It's been reported in the scientific press that metallic hydrogen has been created in a laboratory, under intense cold and pressure. If this discovery can be confirmed, it will amount to a major scientific and technological breakthrough.

Among the possible uses for metallic hydrogen are: room temperature superconductors for more efficient power transmission and computers, and rocket fuel with nearly four times the efficiency of the best fuels currently available, enabling single stage to orbit rocketry.

link to article with more details:

https://phys.org/news/2017-01-metallic-hydrogen-theory-reality.html

Great, where can I buy some and how much does it cost?

Great, where can I buy some and how much does it cost?

I would rather have some Element 115 , a bloke i know called "Bob L" says you can warp space with that stuff ;-)

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Life is what you make of it :-)

When i'm good i'm very good , but when i'm bad i'm shi#eloads better ;-) In't I " buttercups " p.m.s.l at authoritie !!;-)

Some time will obviously pass before metallic hydrogen is put to any practical use, supposing they've really got it now, or before it becomes a commercial product. Link, below to an article with more details about the discovery, and plans for further tests. They mention that the supposed hydrogen metal has a reddish sheen. Is anyone aware of a good reason in physics for why this should be so?

http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/01/diamond-vise-turns-hydrogen-metal-potentially-ending-80-year-quest

The minute sample of metallic hydrogen, presumably the world's entire supply of this material, so far, was lost while being tested in the lab. The vise holding it broke when a laser beam was shown on the sample.

The sample then either dissolved into gas, or if it's real metallic hydrogen, probably fell down in the lab, intact, and can't be seen or found.

The scientists involved propose to repeat their experiment in the near future, with improved materials and lab protocols. Article updating this story, linked below:

http://www.sciencealert.com/the-world-s-only-metallic-hydrogen-sample-has-disappeared

Any information so far about how stable it is if you remove the intense cold and pressure?

In theory, it should remain stable even when the pressure is removed, and it's allowed to turn to room temperature. We still need experimental results to prove this, though. With the only sample missing, we don't really know if it dissolved or simply fell down and got lost, when the vise broke; the sample was apparently very tiny. There's even been some doubt expressed that they made metallic hydrogen at all. Again, without the sample, this can't be ascertained.