A research team led by Shuro Takano at NAOJ and Taku Nakajima at Nagoya University observed the spiral galaxy M77 with ALMA and discovered that organic molecules are concentrated in […]
Astrochemistry
Posted inAstrochemistry
Complex Organics in the Inner Regions of Solar-type Protostars
The high abundances of Complex Organic Molecules (COMs) with respect to methanol, the most abundant COM, detected towards low-mass protostars, tend to be underpredicted by astrochemical models. This discrepancy might […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Press Release
Oxygen Enrichment in Carbon-rich Planetary Nebulae
We studied the relation between the chemical composition and the type of dust present in a group of 20 Galactic planetary nebulae (PNe) that have high quality optical and infrared […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Press Release
Shedding Light on the Formation of the Pre-biotic Molecule Formamide with ASAI
Formamide (NH2CHO) has been proposed as a pre-biotic precursor with a key role in the emergence of life on Earth. While this molecule has been observed in space, most of […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Press Release
Collisions of Small ice Particles Under Microgravity Conditions
Understanding the collisional properties of ice is important for understanding both the early stages of planet formation and the evolution of planetary ring systems. Simple chemicals such as methanol and […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Press Release
A New Chemical Scheme to Study Carbon-rich Exoplanet Atmospheres
Atmospheres with a high C/O ratio are expected to contain an important quantity of hydrocarbons, including heavy molecules (with more than 2 carbon atoms). To study correctly these C-rich atmospheres, […]
Posted inAstrochemistry
Antifreeze in the Hot Core of Orion: First Detection of Ethylene Glycol in Orion-KL
Comparison of their chemical compositions shows, to first order, a good agreement between the cometary and interstellar abundances. However, a complex O-bearing organic molecule, ethylene glycol (CH2OH)2, seems to depart […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics
Life on Other Planets: Alternative Chemistries of Life
Ideas about directing evolution of life forms on Earth and finding life on other planets are rapidly morphing from science-fiction fantasy into mainstream science, says David Lynn, a chemist at […]
Posted inAstrochemistry
Hydrogenation at Low Temperatures Does Not Always Lead to Saturation: The Case of HNCO
It is generally agreed that hydrogenation reactions dominate chemistry on grain surfaces in cold, dense molecular cores, saturating the molecules present in ice mantles. Aims. We present a study of […]
Posted inAstrochemistry
In-situ Measurements of the Radiation Stability of Amino Acids at 15-140 K
We present new kinetics data on the radiolytic destruction of amino acids measured in situ with infrared spectroscopy. Samples were irradiated at 15, 100, and 140 K with 0.8-MeV protons, […]