young stellar object Archives - Astrobiology

Optical depth spectrum and ENIIGMA best-fit model for the 4.0-4.45 µm region and its separate components. Major gas lines are labeled. The inset zooms in on the HDO ice feature. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

First Detection Of HDO Ice In A Protoplanetary Disk

by Keith CowingJune 11, 2026June 11, 2026

Protoplanetary disks are the birthplace of planets and planetary systems. Investigating the molecular inventory of disks is key to linking the chemical evolution of the interstellar medium and the makeup […]

CH3OH/H2O column density ratio found in the literature for a wide range of clouds, YSOs and Solar System comets (see Sect 4.1 for the references). The values for molecular clouds, LYSOs and MYSOs reflect the ice composition, while the ratio was measured in the gas-phase for protoplanetary disks and comets. We used open symbols for the protoplanetary disks in which the upper/lower limit on the methanol-to-water column density ratio was estimated combining measurements taken at different wavelength ranges. The upward triangles for the HD 100546 and the IRS 48 disks indicate a lower limit, whereas the downward triangles for DG Tau A and HL Tau indicate a upper limit. The values for HL Tau are taken dividing the 3σ upper limit on the NCH3OH for the three different assumed excitation temperature in Table 2 for the water column density measured by Facchini et al. (2024). -- astro-ph.SR

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Hunting For Methanol In The Water Rich, Planet Forming Disk Aaround HL Tau

by Keith CowingMarch 13, 2026March 13, 2026

Methanol, the simplest complex organic molecule found in space, is considered a key compound necessary for the formation of chemical species of prebiotic interest. Methanol detections in protoplanetary disks remain […]

Image of the field around V830 Tau. The cell size is 0.5”. The contours are 9, 18, 36, 72, 144, 288, 576, 1150, 2300, and 4610 µJy, with a blank-field rms of 1.8 µJy. -- astro-ph.SR

Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, Stellar Cartography

The Variable Radio Emission Of V830 Tau And Its Putative Planet

by Keith CowingSeptember 19, 2025September 19, 2025

We report on the first moderate-length time-scale observations of a young stellar object (YSO) at microwave frequencies. V830 Tau was monitored over the course of eight days with the JVLA […]

Extracted spectra of the investigated sources. Left: full NIRSpec spectra with major ice features labeled. The original spectra before gas emission subtraction are plotted in gray. The spectral region of the strongest HDO absorption, the O-D stretching mode, is indicated via magenta shading. The spectral region plotted on the right is indicated via gray shading. Right: a zoomed-in view of the spectral region of interest for HDO ice. -- astro-ph.SR

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

JWST Detections Of Amorphous And Crystalline HDO Ice Toward Massive Protostars

by Keith CowingApril 26, 2024April 26, 2024

This work aims to utilize the increased sensitivity and resolution of the JWST to quantify the HDO/H2O ratio in ices toward young stellar objects (YSOs) and to determine if the […]