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1.
Volatile organic emissions were detected post-perihelion in the long-period Comet C/2006 M4 (SWAN) in October and November 2006. Our study combines target-of-opportunity infrared observations using the Cryogenic Echelle Spectrometer (CSHELL) at the NASA-IRTF 3-m telescope, and millimeter wavelength observations using the Arizona Radio Observatory (ARO) 12-m telescope. Five parent volatiles were measured with CSHELL (H2O, CO, CH3OH, CH4, and C2H6), and two additional species (HCN and CS) were measured with the ARO 12-m. These revealed highly depleted CO and somewhat enriched CH3OH compared with abundances observed in the dominant group of long-period (Oort cloud) comets in our sample and similar to those observed recently in Comet 8P/Tuttle. This may indicate highly efficient H-atom addition to CO at very low temperature (∼10-20 K) on the surfaces of interstellar (pre-cometary) grains. Comet C/2006 M4 had nearly “normal” C2H6 and CH4, suggesting a processing history similar to that experienced by the dominant group. When compared with estimated water production at the time of the millimeter observations, HCN was slightly depleted compared with the normal abundance in comets based on IR observations but was consistent with the majority of values from the millimeter. The ratio CS/HCN in C/2006 M4 was within the range measured in ten comets at millimeter wavelengths. The higher apparent H-atom conversion efficiency compared with most comets may indicate that the icy grains incorporated into C/2006 M4 were exposed to higher H-atom densities, or alternatively to similar densities but for a longer period of time.  相似文献   

2.
C/2006 P1 McNaught is a dynamically new comet from the Oort cloud that passed very close to the Sun, driving overall volatile production rates up to about 1031 molecules s−1. Post-perihelion observations were obtained in a target-of-opportunity campaign using the CSHELL instrument at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility atop Mauna Kea, Hawaii, on UT 2007 January 27 and 28. Eight parent volatiles (H2O, CH4, C2H2, C2H6, HCN, CO, NH3, H2CO) and two daughter fragments (OH and NH2) were detected, enabling the determination of a rotational temperature and production rate for H2O on UT January 27 and absolute and relative production rates for all the detected parent species on UT January 28. The chemical composition measured in the coma suggests that this close perihelion passage stripped off processed outer surface layers, likely exposing relatively fresh primordial material during these observations. The post-perihelion abundances we measure for CO and CH4 (relative to H2O) are slightly depleted while C2H2, NH2 and possibly NH3 are enhanced when compared to the overall comet population. Measured abundances for other detected molecular species were within the range typically observed in comets.  相似文献   

3.
We used the NIRSPEC instrument on the Keck-2 telescope atop Mauna Kea, HI to observe Comet C/2001 A2 (LINEAR) in a Target of Opportunity campaign on UT 2001 July 9.5, 10.5 August 4.4, 10.5. We measured seven organic parent volatiles (C2H6, C2H2, HCN, CH4, CO, CH3OH, H2CO) simultaneously with H2O. We obtained absolute production rates and relative abundances for parent volatiles, and also measured rotational temperatures for several of these species. The chemical composition of C/2001 A2 differs substantially from any comet we have observed to date. The abundances we measure (relative to H2O) for C2H6, C2H2, HCN, and CH3OH are enriched by a factor of ∼2 to 3 in C/2001 A2 compared with most comets in our database. Other molecular species were detected within the typical range of measured abundances. C/2001 A2 presented a unique opportunity to study the chemistry of a fragmenting comet where pristine areas are exposed to the Sun.  相似文献   

4.
E.L. Gibb  M.J. Mumma  M.A. DiSanti 《Icarus》2003,165(2):391-406
We detected CH4 in eight Oort cloud comets using high-dispersion (λ/Δλ∼2×104) infrared spectra acquired with CSHELL at NASA's IRTF and NIRSPEC at the W.M. Keck Observatory. The observed comets were C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp), C/1996 B2 (Hyakutake), C/1999 H1 (Lee), C/1999 T1 (McNaught-Hartley), C/1999 S4 (LINEAR), C/2000 WM1 (LINEAR), C/2001 A2 (LINEAR), and 153/P Ikeya-Zhang (C/2002 C1). We detected the R0 and R1 lines of the ν3 vibrational band of CH4 near 3.3 μm in each comet, with the exception of McNaught-Hartley where only the R0 line was measured. In order to obtain production rates, a fluorescence model has been developed for this band of CH4. We report g-factors for the R0 and R1 transitions at several rotational temperatures typically found in comet comae and relevant to our observations. Using g-factors appropriate to Trot as determined from HCN, CO and/or H2O and C2H6, CH4 production rates and mixing ratios are presented. Abundances of CH4/H2O are compared among our existing sample of comets, in the context of establishing their place of origin. In addition, CH4 is compared to native CO, another hypervolatile species, and no correlation is found among the comets observed.  相似文献   

5.
Radiation synthesis has been proposed as a mechanism for changing the nature of the outer few meters of ice in a comet stored 4.6 billion years in the Oort cloud and may explain some of the differences observed between new and more evolved comets. Cometary-type ice mixtures were studied in a laboratory experiment designed to approximately simulate the expected temperature, pressure, and radiation environment of the interstellar Oort cloud region. The 2.5- to 15-μm infrared absorption features of thin ice films were analyzed near 20°K before and after 1 MeV proton irradiation. Various ice mixtures included the molecules H2O, NH3, CH4, N2, C3H8, CO, and CO2. All experiments confirm the synthesis of new molecular species in solid phase mixtures at 20°K. The synthesized molecules, identified by their infrared signatures, are C2H6, CO2, CO, N2O, NO, and CH4 (weak). Synthesized molecules, identified by gas chromatographic (GC) analysis of the volatile fraction of the warmed irradiated ice mixture, are C2H4 or C2H6, and C3H8. When CH4 is present in the irradiated ice mixture, long-chained volatile hydrocarbons and CO2 are synthesized along with high-molecular-weight carbon compounds present in the room temperature residue. Irradiated mixtures containing CO and H2O synthesize CO2 and those CO2 and H2O synthesize CO. Due to radiation synthesis, ～1% of the ice was converted into a nonvolatile residue containing complicated carbon compounds not present in blank samples. These results suggest that irrespective of the composition of newly accreted comets, initial molecular abundances can be altered and new species created as a result of radiation synthesis. Irradiated mixtures exhibited thermoluminescence and pressure enhancements during warming; these phenomena suggest irradiation synthesis of reactive species. Ourbursts in new comets resulting from similar radiation induced exothermic activity would be expected to occur beginning at distances of the order of 100 AU.  相似文献   

6.
We measured the chemical composition of Comet C/2007 W1 (Boattini) using the long-slit echelle grating spectrograph at Keck-2 (NIRSPEC) on 2008 July 9 and 10. We sampled 11 volatile species (H2O, OH∗, C2H6, CH3OH, H2CO, CH4, HCN, C2H2, NH3, NH2, and CO), and retrieved three important cosmogonic indicators: the ortho-para ratios of H2O and CH4, and an upper-limit for the D/H ratio in water. The abundance ratios of almost all trace volatiles (relative to water) are among the highest ever observed in a comet. The comet also revealed a complex outgassing pattern, with some volatiles (the polar species H2O and CH3OH) presenting very asymmetric spatial profiles (extended in the anti-sunward hemisphere), while others (e.g., C2H6 and HCN) showed particularly symmetric profiles. We present emission profiles measured along the Sun-comet line for all observed volatiles, and discuss different production scenarios needed to explain them. We interpret the emission profiles in terms of release from two distinct moieties of ice, the first being clumps of mixed ice and dust released from the nucleus into the sunward hemisphere. The second moiety considered is very small grains of nearly pure polar ice (water and methanol, without dark material or apolar volatiles). Such grains would sublimate only very slowly, and could be swept into the anti-sunward hemisphere by radiation pressure and solar-actuated non-gravitational jet forces, thus providing an extended source in the anti-sunward hemisphere.  相似文献   

7.
Uwe Fink 《Icarus》2009,201(1):311-334
A summary is presented of our spectroscopic survey of comets extending for roughly 19 years from 1985 to 2004 comprising data for 92 comets of which 50 showed good emissions. All data were re-analyzed using consistent reduction techniques. Our observations of comets over several apparitions and comets observed over an extended period indicate no major changes in compositional classification. To our regret, no major unidentified cometary features were found in our surveyed spectral region of 5200-10400 Å. Absolute production rates for the dominant parent molecule H2O and the daughter species C2, NH2 and CN are determined within the limits of the Haser model as are values for the dust continuum, Afρ. From these data, production rate ratios are calculated for C2/H2O, NH2/H2O, CN/H2O and Afρ/H2O. Excluding the odd Comets Yanaka (1988r), 43P/Wolf-Harrington and 19P/Borrelly, with unusual spectra, our set of comets exhibited relatively uniform composition. Detailed analyses of our data resulted in four taxonomic classes:
-
Comets of typical composition (∼70%); exhibiting typical ratios with respect to water of C2, NH2, and CN.
-
Tempel 1 type (∼22%); having a deficiency in C2 but normal NH2 abundance.
-
G-Z type (∼6%); having both low C2 and NH2 ratios.
-
The unusual object Yanaka (1988r) (∼2%?); no detectable C2 or CN emission but normal NH2.
It is uncertain whether there is a clear separation between the comets of typical composition and those with C2 depletion, or whether the latter consists of a group showing a continuum of decreasing C2/CN ratios. Our spectroscopic investigations result in a visual record of the various compositional classes, which are illustrated in a number of figures. Production rate comparisons with the comet photometry program of Schleicher and A'Hearn [A'Hearn, M.F., and 4 colleagues, 1995. Icarus 118, 223-270] for 13 comets in common yielded good agreement once the different scale lengths are taken into account. An investigation into the possible origin of our compositional groups with respect to dynamical families of comets shows that the Halley family exhibits essentially no C2 depletion. These objects were presumably formed in the region of Saturn and Uranus and scattered into the Oort cloud. Comets formed in the space near Neptune, responsible for the scattered Kuiper Belt show a mixture of “typical” and C2 depleted objects, while we associate comets formed in-situ in the classical Kuiper belt with our C2 depleted group.  相似文献   

8.
T.Y Brooke  H.A Weaver  G Chin  S.J Kim 《Icarus》2003,166(1):167-187
High resolution infrared spectra of Comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) were obtained during 2-5 March 1997 UT from the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, when the comet was at r≈1.0 AU from the Sun pre-perihelion. Emission lines of CH4, C2H6, HCN, C2H2, CH3OH, H2O, CO, and OH were detected. The rotational temperature of CH4 in the inner coma was Trot=110±20 K. Spatial profiles of CH4, C2H6, and H2O were consistent with release solely from the nucleus. The centroid of the CO emission was offset from that of the dust continuum and H2O. Spatial profiles of the CO lines were much broader than those of the other molecules and asymmetric. We estimate the CO production rate using a simplified outflow model: constant, symmetric outflow from the peak position. A model of the excitation of CO that includes optical depth effects using an escape probability method is presented. Optical depth effects are not sufficient to explain the broad spatial extent. Using a parent+extended-source model, the broad extent of the CO lines can be explained by CO being produced mostly (∼90% on 5 March) from an extended source in the coma. The CO rotational temperature was near 100 K. Abundances relative to H2O (in percent) were 1.1±0.3 (CH4), 0.39±0.10 (C2H6), 0.18±0.04 (HCN), 0.17±0.04 (C2H2), 1.7±0.5 (CH3OH), and 37-41 (CO, parent+extended source). These are roughly comparable to those obtained for other long-period comets also observed in the infrared, though CO appears to vary.  相似文献   

9.
We present a comparative study on molecular abundances in comets basedon millimetre/submillimetre observations made with the IRAM 30-m,JCMT, CSO and SEST telescopes. This study concerns a sample of 24comets (6 Jupiter-family, 3 Halley-family, 15 long-period) observedfrom 1986 to 2001 and 8 molecular species (HCN, HNC, CH3CN,CH3OH, H2CO, CO, CS, H2S). HCN was detected in all comets,while at least 2 molecules were detected in 19 comets. From the sub-sample of comets for which contemporary H2O productionrates are available, we infer that the HCN abundance relative to water variesfrom 0.08% to 0.25%. With respect to other species, HCN is the moleculewhich exhibits the lowest abundance variation from comet to comet. Therefore,production rates relative to that of HCN can be used for a comparative study ofmolecular abundances in the 19 comets. It is found that: CH3OH/HCN varies from ≤ 9 to 64; CO/HCN varies from ≤ 24 to 180; H2CO/HCN varies between 1.6 and 10; and H2S/HCN varies between 1.5 and 7.6. This study does not show any clear correlation between the relative abundancesand the dynamical origins of the comets, or their dust-to-gas ratios.  相似文献   

10.
The Deep Impact encounter with the Jupiter family Comet 9P/Tempel 1 on UT 2005 July 4 was observed at high spectral resolving power (λ/δλ∼25,000) using the cross-dispersed near-infrared echelle spectrometer (NIRSPEC) at Keck-2. We report the temporal evolution of parent volatiles and dust (simultaneously measured) resulting from the event. Column abundances are presented for H2O and C2H6 beginning 30 min prior to impact (T−30) and ending 50 min following impact (T+50), and for H2O and HCN from T+50 until T+96, in time steps of approximately 6 min post-impact. The ejecta composition was revealed by an abrupt increase in H2O and C2H6 near T+25. This showed C2H6/H2O to be higher than its pre-impact value by a factor 2.4±0.5, while HCN/H2O was unchanged within the uncertainty of the measurements. The mixing ratios for C2H6 and HCN in the ejecta agree with those found in the majority of Oort cloud comets, perhaps indicating a common region of formation. The expanding dust plume was tracked by continuum measurements, both through the 3.5-μm spectral continuum and through 2-μm images acquired with the SCAM slit-viewing camera, and each showed a monotonic increase in continuum intensity following impact. A Monte Carlo model that included dust opacity was applied to the dust coma, and its parameters were constrained by observations; the simulated continuum intensities reproduced both spectral and SCAM data. The relatively sudden appearance of the volatile ejecta signature is attributed to heating of icy grains (perhaps to a threshold temperature) that are decreasingly shadowed by intervening (sunward) dust particles in an optically thick ejecta plume, perhaps coupled with an accelerated decrease in dust optical depth near T+25.  相似文献   

11.
Dirty ice of a second kind (major components, H2O, CO, and N2; minor components less than several percents, NH3, CH4, and other organic substances such as HCN, CH3CN etc.) is assumed for the composition of volatiles in the cometary nucleus. The consistency with the observations of molecular ions and daughter molecules in the cometary atmosphere is argued by taking into account various ion-molecular reactions and dissociative recombinations. There is a satisfactory agreement for the second kind of dirty-ice model, but the presence of large amounts of CH4 and NH3 is found to be rather in contradiction with observational evidence. A velocity of 8 km s?1 for the hydrogen atoms, derived from analysis of the hydrogen Lyman-alpha corona around comets, is found from the dissociative recombination of H3O+, the dominant constituent of cometary ionosphere, in accordance with H3O++e ?→OH+H+H.  相似文献   

12.
The neutral gas environment of a comet is largely influenced by dissociation of parent molecules created at the surface of the comet and collisions of all the involved species. We compare the results from a kinetic model of the neutral cometary environment with measurements from the Neutral Mass Spectrometer and the Dust Impact Detection System onboard the Giotto spacecraft taken during the fly-by at Comet 1P/Halley in 1986. We also show that our model is in good agreement with contemporaneous measurements obtained by the International Ultraviolet Explorer, sounding rocket experiments, and various ground based observations.The model solves the Boltzmann equation with a Direct Simulation Monte Carlo technique (Tenishev, V., Combi, M., Davidsson, B. [2008]. Astrophys. J. 685, 659-677) by tracking trajectories of gas molecules and dust grains under the influence of the comet’s weak gravity field with momentum exchange among particles modeled in a probabilistic manner. The cometary nucleus is considered to be the source of dust and the parent species (in our model: H2O, CO, H2CO, CO2, CH3OH, C2H6, C2H4, C2H2, HCN, NH3, and CH4) in the coma. Subsequently our model also tracks the corresponding dissociation products (H, H2, O, OH, C, CH, CH2, CH3, N, NH, NH2, C2, C2H, C2H5, CN, and HCO) from the comet’s surface all the way out to 106 km.As a result we are able to further constrain cometary the gas production rates of CO (13%), CO2 (2.5%), and H2CO (1.5%) relative to water without invoking unknown extended sources.  相似文献   

13.
The apparition of Comet C/1996 B2 (Hyakutake) offered an unexpected and rare opportunity to probe the inner atmosphere of a comet with high spatial resolution and to investigate with unprecedented sensitivity its chemical composition. We present observations of over 30 submillimeter transitions of HCN, H13CN, HNC, HNCO, CO, CH3OH, and H2CO in Comet Hyakutake carried out between 1996 March 18 and April 9 at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory. Detections of the H13CN (4–3) and HNCO (160,16–150,15) transitions represent the first observations of these species in a comet. In addition, several other transitions, including HCN (8–7), CO (4–3), and CO (6–5) are detected for the first time in a comet as is the hyperfine structure of the HCN (4–3) line. The observed intensities of the HCN (4–3) hyperfine components indicate a line center optical depth of 0.9 ± 0.2 on March 22.5 UT. The HCN/HNC abundance ratio in Comet Hyakutake at a heliocentric distance of 1 AU is similar to that measured in the Orion extended ridge— a warm, quiescent molecular cloud. The HCN/H13CN abundance ratio implied by our observations is 34 ± 12, similar to that measured in giant molecular clouds in the galactic disk but significantly lower than the Solar System12C/13C ratio. The low HCN/H13CN abundance ratio may be in part due to contamination by an SO2line blended with the H13CN (4–3) line. In addition, chemical models suggest that the HCN/H13CN ratio can be affected by fractionation during the collapse phase of the protosolar nebula; hence a low HCN/H13CN ratio observed in a comet is not inconsistent with the solar system12C/13C isotopic ratio. The abundance of HNCO relative to water derived from our observations is (7 ± 3) × 10−4. The HCN/HNCO abundance ratio is similar to that measured in the core of Sagittarius B2 molecular cloud. Although a photo-dissociative channel of HNCO leads to CO, the CO produced by HNCO is a negligible component of cometary atmospheres. Production rates of HCN, CO, H2CO, and CH3OH are presented. Inferred molecular abundances relative to water are typical of those measured in comets at 1 AU from the Sun. The exception is CO, for which we derive a large relative abundance of 30%. The evolution of the HCN production rate between March 20 and March 30 suggests that the increased activity of the comet was the cause of the fragmentation of the nucleus. The time evolution of the H2CO emission suggests production of this species from dust grains.  相似文献   

14.
Using synthetic spectra derived from an updated model atmosphere together with a continuum model that includes contributions from haze, cloud and ground, we have re-analyzed the recently published (Geballe et al., 2003, Astrophys. J. 583, L39-L42) high-resolution 3 μm spectrum of Titan which contains newly-detected bands of HCN (in emission) and C2H2 and CH3D (in absorption), in addition to previously detected bands of CH4. In the 3.10-3.54 μm interval the analysis yields strong evidence for the existence of a cloud deck or optically thick haze layer at about the 10 mbar (∼ 100 km) level. The haze must extend well above this altitude in order to mask the strong CH4 lines at 3.20-3.50 μm. These cloud and haze components must be transparent at 2.87-2.92 μm, where analysis of the CH3D spectrum demonstrates that Titan's surface is glimpsed through a second cloud deck at about the 100 mbar (∼ 50 km) level. Through a combination of areal distribution and optical depth this cloud deck has an effective transmittance of ∼ 20%. The spectral shape of Titan's continuum indicates that the higher altitude cloud and haze particles responsible for suppressing the CH4 absorptions have a largely organic make-up. The rotational temperature of the HCN ranges from 140 to 180 K, indicating that the HCN emission occurs over a wide range of altitudes. This emission, remodeled using an improved collisional deactivation rate, implies mesospheric mixing ratio curves that are consistent with previously predictions. The stratospheric and mesospheric C2H2 mixing ratios are ∼10−5, considerably less than previous model predictions (Yung et al., 1984), but approximately consistent with recent observational results. Upper limits to mixing ratios of HC3N and C4H2 are derived from non-detections of those species near 3.0 μm.  相似文献   

15.
A. Bar-Nun  M. Podolak 《Icarus》1985,64(1):112-124
The lightning energy dissipation rate on Jupiter from Voyager's observation is used, together with shock-tube experimental results and reasonable eddy diffusion coefficients for the various atmospheric layers, to compute the column abundances of lightning-produced CO, C2H2, and HCN. Shock-tube experiments on the hydrogenation of CO clearly rule out chemical “freezing” of CO at the 1064°K and 400-bar level and its subsequent upwelling to the upper atmosphere. Also, lightning in the water cloud cannot produce enough CO to meet its observed abundance. Hence, the CO is formed from an external source of oxygen or water. The production of acetylene both by lightning above the water cloud and by startospheric methane photolysis is required to maintain its observed abundance against destruction processes. This explains the decrease in the C2H2/C2H6 ratio from the equator to the pole, as observed in the IR. HCN production by lightning above the water cloud is sufficient to account for its observed abundance and meets the observational requirement of a tropospheric HCN source.  相似文献   

16.
M.H. Moore  R.L. Hudson 《Icarus》2003,161(2):486-500
Infrared spectra and radiation chemical behavior of N2-dominated ices relevant to the surfaces of Triton and Pluto are presented. This is the first systematic IR study of proton-irradiated N2-rich ices containing CH4 and CO. Experiments at 12 K show that HCN, HNC, and diazomethane (CH2N2) form in the solid phase, along with several radicals. NH3 is also identified in irradiated N2 + CH4 and N2 + CH4 + CO. We show that HCN and HNC are made in irradiated binary ice mixtures having initial N2/CH4 ratios from 100 to 4, and in three-component mixtures have an initial N2/(CH4 + CO) ratio of 50. HCN and HNC are not detected in N2-dominated ices when CH4 is replaced with C2H6, C2H2, or CH3OH.The intrinsic band strengths of HCN and HNC are measured and used to calculate G(HCN) and G(HNC) in irradiated N2 + CH4 and N2 + CH4 + CO ices. In addition, the HNC/HCN ratio is calculated to be ∼1 in both icy mixtures. These radiolysis results reveal, for the first time, solid-phase synthesis of both HCN and HNC in N2-rich ices containing CH4.We examine the evolution of spectral features due to acid-base reactions (acids such as HCN, HNC, and HNCO and a base, NH3) triggered by warming irradiated ices from 12 K to 30-35 K. We identify anions (OCN−, CN−, and N3−) in ices warmed to 35 K. These ions are expected to form and survive on the surfaces of Triton and Pluto. Our results have astrobiological implications since many of these products (HCN, HNC, HNCO, NH3, NH4OCN, and NH4CN) are involved in the syntheses of biomolecules such as amino acids and polypeptides.  相似文献   

17.
Infrared observations of comets C/1996 B2 (Hyakutake) and C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) benefited from the high spectral resolution and sensitivity of échelle spectrometers now equipping ground-based telescopes and from the availability of the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO). From the ground, several hydrocarbons were unambiguously detected for the first time: CH4, C2H2, C2H6. Water was observed through several of its hot vibrational bands, escaping telluric absorption. CO, HCN, NH3 and OCS were also observed, as well as several radicals. This permitted the evaluation of molecular production rates, of rotational temperature, and — taking advantage of the 1-D imaging of long-slit spectroscopy — of the space distribution of these species. With ISO, carbon dioxide was directly observed for the second time in a comet (after its detection from the Vega probes in P/Halley). The spectrum of water was investigated in detail (several bands of vibration and far-infrared rotational lines), permitting the evaluation of the rotational temperature of water, and of it spin temperature from the ortho-to-para ratio. Water ice was identified in the grains of Hale-Bopp as far as 7 AU from the ground and possibly at 3 AU with ISO. The composition of cometary volatiles appears to be strikingly similar to that of interstellar ices. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.  相似文献   

18.
Mid-infrared spectra measured by Cassini's Composite InfraRed Spectrometer (CIRS) between July 2004 and January 2007 (Ls=293°-328°) have been used to determine stratospheric temperature and abundances of C2H2, C3H4, C4H2, HCN, and HC3N. Over 65,000 nadir spectra with spectral resolutions of 0.5 and 2.5 cm−1 were used to probe spatial and temporal composition variations in Titan's stratosphere. Cassini's 180° orbital transfer in mid-2006 allowed low emission angle observations of the north polar region for the first time in the mission and allowed us to probe the full latitude range. We present the first measurements of composition variations within the polar vortex, which display increasing abundances right up to 90° N. The lack of a homogeneous abundance-latitude variation within the vortex indicates limited horizontal mixing and suggests that subsidence is greatest at the vortex core. Contrary to numerical model predictions and tropospheric cloud observations, we do not see any evidence for a secondary circulation cell near the south pole, which suggests a single Hadley-type circulation in the stratosphere at this epoch. This difference can be reconciled if the secondary cell is restricted to altitudes below 100 km, where there is no sensitivity in our data. Temporal variations in composition were observed in the south, with volatile species becoming less abundant as the season progressed. The observed variations are compared to numerical model predictions and observations from Voyager.  相似文献   

19.
We calculate the amount of methane that may form via reactions catalyzed by metal-rich dust that condenses in the wake of large cometary impacts. Previous models of the gas-phase chemistry of impacts predicted that the terrestrial planets' atmospheres should be initially dominated by CO/CO2, N2, and H2O. CH4 was not predicted to form in impacts because gas-phase reactions in the explosion quench at temperatures ∼2000 K, at which point all of the carbon is locked in CO. We argue that the dust that condenses out in the wake of a large comet impact is likely to have very effective catalytic properties, opening up reaction pathways to convert CO and H2 to CH4 and CO2, at temperatures of a few hundred K. Together with CO2, CH4 is an important greenhouse gas that has been invoked to compensate for the lower luminosity of the Sun ∼4 Gyr ago. Here, we show that heterogeneous (gas-solid) reactions on freshly-recondensed dust in the impact cloud may provide a plausible nonbiological mechanism for reducing CO to CH4 before and during the emergence of life on Earth, and perhaps Mars as well. These encouraging results emphasize the importance of future research into the kinetics and catalytic properties of astrophysical condensates or “smokes” and also more detailed models to determine the conditions in impact-generated dust clouds.  相似文献   

20.
Biver  N.  Bockelée-Morvan  D.  Colom  P.  Crovisier  J.  Germain  B.  Lellouch  E.  Davies  J. K.  Dent  W. R. F.  Moreno  R.  Paubert  G.  Wink  J.  Despois  D.  Lis  D. C.  Mehringer  D.  Benford  D.  Gardner  M.  Phillips  T. G.  Gunnarsson  M.  Rickman  H.  Winnberg  A.  Bergman  P.  Johansson  L. E. B.  Rauer  H. 《Earth, Moon, and Planets》1997,78(1-3):5-11
C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) has been observed on a regular basis since August 1995 at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths using IRAM, JCMT, CSO and SEST radio telescopes. The production rates of eight molecular species (CO, HCN, CH3OH, H2CO,H2S, CS, CH3CN,HNC) have been monitored as a function of heliocentric distance(rh from 7 AU pre-perihelion to 4 AU post-perihelion. As comet Hale-Bopp approached and receded from the Sun, these species displayed different behaviours. Far from the Sun, the most volatile species were found in general relatively more abundant in the coma. In comparison to other species, HNC, H2CO and CS showed a much steeper increase of the production rate with decreasing rh. Less than 1.5 AU from the Sun, the relative abundances were fairly stable and approached those found in other comets near 1 AU. The kinetic temperature of the coma, estimated from the relative intensities of the CH3OH and CO lines, increased with decreasing rh, from about10 K at 7 AU to 110 K around perihelion. The expansion velocity of the gaseous species, derived from the line shapes, also increased with a law close torh 3. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.  相似文献   

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