CfA astronomers have helped discover rare types of methanol, a building block required for life as we know it to form.
ALMA
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Connecting Planetary Composition With Formation: A New Paradigm Emerges
Extensive ground and space based surveys have now characterized the properties of thousands of exoplanets; their radii, masses, orbits around their host stars, and the beginnings of accurate measurements of […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Charting Circumstellar Chemistry of Carbon-rich Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars. II. Abundances and Spatial Distributions of CS
The circumstellar envelopes (CSEs) of asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars harbour a rich variety of molecules and are sites of complex chemistry.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
VUV Processing of Nitrile Ice: Direct Comparison of Branching in Ice and TPD Spectra
The interplay between radiation chemistry and sublimation dynamics of condensed organic compounds on cold grains is fundamental to describe observed gas-phase and ice-phase molecular abundances in the ISM.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release
A Multitude Of Protoplanetary Discs Detected In The Galactic Center
For decades, astronomers have discovered hundreds of protoplanetary disks – structures believed to represent the early stages of our own solar system.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
The JDISC Survey: Linking the Physics and Chemistry of Inner and Outer Protoplanetary Disk Zones
MIRI spectra of select targets from the JDISCS sample, representing broad categories of sources, namely: intermediate mass, transition disk (with a large dust cavity), solar-mass with weak water emission, solar-mass […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
First Detection of Molecular Activity in the Largest Known Oort Cloud Comet: ALMA Imaging of C/2014 UN271 (Bernardinelli-Bernstein) At 16.6 au From The Sun
We report observations of comet C/2014 UN271 (Bernardinelli-Bernstein) carried out on UT 2024 March 8 and 17 at a heliocentric distance (rH) of 16.6 au using the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
ALMA Inspires New Models for the Evolution of Planet-Forming Disks
By combining ALMA observations and simulations, the ODISEA team traces how planets may form and reshape their disks.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Press Release, Stellar Cartography
New Discovery Changes Views On Star And Planet Formation
A study led by Paolo Padoan, ICREA research professor at the Institute of Cosmos Sciences of the University of Barcelona (ICCUB) and currently on leave at Dartmouth College (United States), […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Status Report
Ice Sublimation In The Dynamic HD 100453 Disk Reveals A Rich Reservoir Of Inherited Complex Organics
Protoplanetary disks around luminous young A-type stars are prime observational laboratories to determine the abundances of complex organic molecules (COMs) present during planet formation.