Microscopic evidence of a flat melting curve of tantalum

New data on the high-pressure melting curve of Ta up to 48 GPa are reported. Evidence of melting from changes in sample texture was found in five different experiments using scanning electron microscopy. The obtained melting temperatures are in excellent agreement with earlier measurements using X-ray diffraction or the laser-speckled method but are in contrast with several theoretical calculations. The results are also compared with shock-wave data. These findings are of geophysical relevance because they confirm the validity of earlier experimental techniques that resulted in low melting slopes of the transition metals measured in the diamond-anvil cell, including iron.