NASA
For the first time, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide ice have been observed in regions around our solar system.
In a new study published in Nature astronomyThe researchers used the infrared spectroscopic capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to analyze the chemical composition of the planet. 59 trans-Neptunian objects (TNO) and centaurs, which are celestial bodies that share characteristics of both asteroids and comets.
according to Phys.orgScientists have discovered that carbon dioxide is abundant in the cold outer regions of the atmosphere Protoplanetary disk.
Researchers reported the discovery of carbon dioxidetwo TNO in 56 objects, and carbon dioxide in 28, from a sample of 59 objects observed using the James Webb Space Telescope.
Companytwo It is found widely on the surfaces of post-Neptunian clusters, while carbon dioxide has only been detected on celestial bodies with High abundance of carbon dioxide.
“It’s the first time we’ve observed this region of the spectrum for a large group of TNOs, so everything we saw was unique in some ways,” says the study’s lead author. Mario de Brain statement.
This discovery helps understand the formation of the solar system and the way celestial bodies “migrated.”
“We did not expect to find that carbon dioxide was so common in the TNO region, let alone that carbon monoxide is present in so many TNO objects,” De Bra adds.
Carbon monoxide ice has been observed in… Pluto Through investigation new Horizonsbut only after the James Webb Space Telescope was there an observation that made it possible to identify and detect traces of carbon monoxide and/or carbon dioxide ice in the largest number of TNO objects.
“The companytwo Maybe it was Accretion from the protoplanetary disk. In contrast, the origin of carbon monoxide is more uncertain,” says De Bra.
“The latter is volatile ice even on the cold surfaces of TNO objects. We cannot rule out the hypothesis that carbon monoxide was added in the first place and remains trapped in some way until today. However, the data suggest that it may have been produced by Irradiation of ice containing carbon“, Highlights.
Scientists analyzed and compared carbon dioxide absorption rangestwo And CO in all objects, and I noticed the presence of some objects a companytwo pureWhile others mixed it with other compounds.
Relating the properties of carbon dioxide to orbital and physical parameters allowed us to conclude that variations in carbon dioxide probably represent different regions of the formation and initial evolution of objects,” concludes the co-author of the study. Elsa Hinault.
