| 1. |
- Fray, Nicolas, et al.
(författare)
-
High-molecular-weight organic matter in the particles of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko
- 2016
-
Ingår i: Nature. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 538:7623, s. 72-74
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The presence of solid carbonaceous matter in cometary dust was established by the detection of elements such as carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen in particles from comet 1P/Halley1, 2. Such matter is generally thought to have originated in the interstellar medium3, but it might have formed in the solar nebula—the cloud of gas and dust that was left over after the Sun formed4. This solid carbonaceous material cannot be observed from Earth, so it has eluded unambiguous characterization5. Many gaseous organic molecules, however, have been observed6, 7, 8, 9; they come mostly from the sublimation of ices at the surface or in the subsurface of cometary nuclei8. These ices could have been formed from material inherited from the interstellar medium that suffered little processing in the solar nebula10. Here we report the in situ detection of solid organic matter in the dust particles emitted by comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko; the carbon in this organic material is bound in very large macromolecular compounds, analogous to the insoluble organic matter found in the carbonaceous chondrite meteorites11, 12. The organic matter in meteorites might have formed in the interstellar medium and/or the solar nebula, but was almost certainly modified in the meteorites’ parent bodies11. We conclude that the observed cometary carbonaceous solid matter could have the same origin as the meteoritic insoluble organic matter, but suffered less modification before and/or after being incorporated into the comet.
|
|
| 2. |
- Hilchenbach, Martin, et al.
(författare)
-
Mechanical and electrostatic experiments with dust particles collected in the inner coma of comet 67P by COSIMA onboard Rosetta
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Philosophical Transactions. Series A. - : The Royal Society. - 1364-503X .- 1471-2962. ; 375:2097
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The in situ cometary dust particle instrument COSIMA (COmetary Secondary Ion Mass Analyser) onboard ESA's Rosetta mission has collected about 31 000 dust particles in the inner coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko since August 2014. The particles are identified by optical microscope imaging and analysed by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry. After dust particle collection by low speed impact on metal targets, the collected particle morphology points towards four families of cometary dust particles. COSIMA is an in situ laboratory that operates remotely controlled next to the comet nucleus. The particles can be further manipulated within the instrument by mechanical and electrostatic means after their collection by impact. The particles are stored above 0°C in the instrument and the experiments are carried out on the refractory, ice-free matter of the captured cometary dust particles. An interesting particle morphology class, the compact particles, is not fragmented on impact. One of these particles was mechanically pressed and thereby crushed into large fragments. The particles are good electrical insulators and transform into rubble pile agglomerates by the application of an energetic indium ion beam during the secondary ion mass spectrometry analysis. This article is part of the themed issue 'Cometary science after Rosetta'. © 2017 The Authors.
|
|
| 3. |
- Torkar, Klaus, et al.
(författare)
-
Long-Term Study of Active Spacecraft Potential Control
- 2008
-
Ingår i: IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science. - 0093-3813 .- 1939-9375. ; 36:5, s. 2294-2300
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Emitters based on the liquid metal ion source principle have been operating on the Cluster spacecraft between 2000 and 2004, in order to control the spacecraft potential. The resulting reduction of positive spacecraft potential reduces perturbations to the plasma measurements on board. Ion currents up to 40 [LA have been applied, which reduced the energy band in which photoelectrons disturb the plasma electron measurements to values close to the lower detection limit of the instrument. The experience with this method, meanwhile, covers both the maximum and minimum of the present solar cycle and allows one to study the variations of photoemission and other long-term trends and their effects on the measurements. A long-term trend of the controlled spacecraft potential is indeed observed. In addition, it appears that reconstruction of the uncontrolled spacecraft potential from the controlled one is possible if certain conditions are fulfilled. Spacecraft potential control can thereby improve the plasma measurements while still allowing one to estimate the total plasma density from the residual potential.
|
|
