A chemical compound in which molecules of one substance are trapped within the cage-like crystal structure of another; something with a latticed or cage-like structure.
From Latin 'clatratus' (furnished with a grating, from 'clathri' meaning bars or grating). This chemistry term was adopted in the early 20th century to describe these cage-like structures.
Methane clathrates—ice with trapped methane gas—are ticking time bombs on the ocean floor; as oceans warm, they could release catastrophic amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas way stronger than CO2.
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