Motivated by the value of CN-bearing molecules as tracers of interstellar physical conditions, we investigate the reactions of adsorbed CN radicals with acetylene and ethylene (C2H2 and C2H4) on interstellar […]
dust grains
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
The Impact Of Surface Acetylene Cyclotrimerization On The Abundance Of Aromatic Hydrocarbons In Carbon-rich Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars
This work investigates the catalytic role of dust grains in forming aromatic hydrocarbons via acetylene cyclotrimerization on their surfaces within the circumstellar envelopes of carbon-rich asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release
Astrochemistry: Physicists Uncork A Message In A Bottle From Another Star
For millions of years, a fragment of ice and dust drifted between the stars—like a sealed bottle cast into the cosmic ocean. This summer, that bottle finally washed ashore in […]
![A collection of photometric fluxes and spectra of T Cha are shown. The blue vertical lines represent the variability in optical fluxes (Alcalá et al. 1993). IR photometric fluxes are from 2MASS, WISE, IRAC, IRAS, and Herschel. The millimetre band fluxes correspond to ALMA at 0.85 and 3 mm, SEST at 1.3 mm, and ATCA at 3.3 mm. The mid-IR spectra from Spitzer (grey) and JWST (orange) shows a varying continuum. Inset figure: The AIBs at 6.2, 8.1, and 11.3 µm, prominently appearing in the JWST spectrum, are marked. The two strong lines in the JWST spectrum correspond to the fine-structure [Ar ii] 6.98 µm and [Ne ii] 12.81 µm transitions. -- astro-ph.SR](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Polycyclic-Aromatic-Hydrocarbon-PAH-Abundances.png?resize=1200%2C720&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) Abundances In The Disk Around T Chamaeleontis (T Cha): PAH Sizes, Ionization Fraction, And Mass During JWST Observations
The T Tauri star T Cha is known to have a protoplanetary disk with a dust gap separating the inner and outer disk regions. The mid-IR JWST spectrum of T […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
A Fast Machine Learning Tool To Predict The Composition Of Astronomical Ices From Infrared Absorption Spectra
Current observations taken by James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) allow us to observe the absorption features of icy mantles that cover interstellar dust grains, which are mainly composed of H2O, […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Exploring The Formation And Alteration Of Organics In Ice: Experimental Insights For Astrochemistry And Space Missions
The formation and alteration of organic molecules within the Solar System and beyond is closely related to the life cycle of ice in space. Cold molecular clouds in the interstellar […]
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, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release
Astrochemistry: Webb Investigates A Dusty And Dynamic Disc
Herbig-Haro objects are small nebulae found in star formation regions, marking the locations where gas flowing out from young stars is heated into luminescence by shockwaves. HH 30 is an […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
The CO-Fuelled Time Machine: Tracing Birth Conditions and Terrestrial Planet Formation Outcomes in HD 163296 through Pebble Drift-induced CO Enhancements
The architecture and composition of planetary systems are thought to be strongly influenced by the transport and delivery of dust and volatiles via ices on pebbles during the planet formation […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Water Ice in the Edge-On Orion Silhouette Disk 114–426 from JWST NIRCam Images
We examine images of the protoplanetary disk 114–426 with JWST/NIRCam in 12 bands. This large disk is oriented edge-on with a dark midplane flanked by lobes of scattered light.