Probable detection of organic-dust-borne aromatic C3H3+ ions in the coma of Comet Halley

Details Probable detection of organic-dust-borne aromatic C3H3+ ions in the coma of Comet Halley Probable detection of organic-dust-borne aromatic C3H3+ ions in the coma of Comet Halley

Jan 1989

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1989natur.337...53k&link_type=abstract

Nature (ISSN 0028-0836), vol. 337, Jan. 5, 1989, p. 53-55. Research supported by the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

27

Aromatic Compounds, Astronomical Spectroscopy, Comet Heads, Cosmic Dust, Cyclic Hydrocarbons, Halley'S Comet, Energy Distribution, Heavy Ions, Mass Spectra, Spaceborne Astronomy, Comets, Halley, Organic Material, Dust, Ions, Comae, Picca Instrument, Spacecraft Observations, Giotto Mission, Cyclopropenyl, Hydrocarbons, Spectra, Composition, Parent Material, Mass Spectrometry

Scientific paper

It is argued here that the distinct peak observed by the PICCA heavy-ion analyzer at mass 39 AMU in the composition and energy distribution of positively charged ions in the coma of Comet Halley is due to the aromatic cation C3H3+. Laboratory mass spectroscopy of unsaturated hydrocarbon-chain molecules and aromatics yields large intensities of mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) = 39; the spectra of the aromatic molecules also indicate the presence of C4H3+ (m/z = 51) and C5H5+ (m/z) = 65). These latter products are not seen in the PICCA data suggesting that unsaturated hydrocarbon chains predominate over aromatics in the cometary environment. It is suggested that the progenitor of the hydrocarbon chains are the 'CHON' dust particles observed around the comet.

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