Complex Organic Molecules in Comets from Remote-Sensing Observations at Millimeter Wavelengths
Year: 2019
Type: article
Abstract: Remote observations of comets, especially using high spectral resolution millimeter spectroscopy, have enabled the detection of over 25 molecules in comets for the last 20 years. Among the molecules identified at radio wavelengths, complex organic molecules (COMs), such as acetaldehyde, ethylene glycol, formamide, methyl formate, or ethanol, have been observed in several comets and their abundances relative to water and methanol have been precisely determined. Significant upper limits on the abundance of several other COMs have been determined and put constraints on the dominant isomer for three of them. The abundances measured in comets are generally of comparable order of magnitude to those measured in star-forming regions, suggesting that comets contain preserved material from the presolar cloud from which the solar system was born.
Source: ACS Earth and Space Chemistry
Authors: Nicolas Biver, Dominique Bockelée-Morvan
Language: English
Topic: Astro and Planetary Science
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2951486432