André Bieler

67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, a Jupiter family comet with a high D/H ratio

The provenance of water and organic compounds on Earth and other terrestrial planets has been discussed for a long time without reaching a consensus. One of the best means to distinguish between different scenarios is by determining the deuterium-to-hydrogen (D/H) ratios in the reservoirs for comets and Earth’s oceans. Here, we report the direct in situ measurement of the D/H ratio in the Jupiter family comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko by the ROSINA mass spectrometer aboard the European Space Agency’s Rosetta spacecraft, which is found to be (5.3 ± 0.7) × 10−4—that is, approximately three times the terrestrial value. Previous cometary measurements and our new finding suggest a wide range of D/H ratios in the water within Jupiter family objects and preclude the idea that this reservoir is solely composed of Earth ocean–like water.

Time variability and heterogeneity in the coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Comets contain the best-preserved material from the beginning of our planetary system. Their nuclei and comae composition reveal clues about physical and chemical conditions during the early solar system when comets formed. ROSINA (Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis) onboard the Rosetta spacecraft has measured the coma composition of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko with well-sampled time resolution per rotation. Measurements were made over many comet rotation periods and a wide range of latitudes. These measurements show large fluctuations in composition in a heterogeneous coma that has diurnal and possibly seasonal variations in the major outgassing species: water, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide. These results indicate a complex coma-nucleus relationship where seasonal variations may be driven by temperature differences just below the comet surface.

Inventory of the volatiles on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko from Rosetta/ROSINA

The ESA Rosetta spacecraft (S/C) is tracking comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in close vicinity. This prolonged en- counter enables studying the evolution of the volatile coma composition. Aims. Our work aims at comparing the diversity of the coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko at large heliocentric distance to study the evolution of the comet during its passage around the Sun and at trying to classify it relative to other comets. Methods. We used the Double Focussing Mass Spectrometer (DFMS) of the ROSINA experiment on ESA’s Rosetta mission to determine relative abundances of major and minor volatile species. This study is restricted to species that have previously been detected elsewhere. Results. We detect almost all species currently known to be present in cometary coma with ROSINA DFMS. As DFMS measured the composition locally, we cannot derive a global abundance, but we compare measurements from the summer and the winter hemisphere with known abundances from other comets. Differences between relative abundances between summer and winter hemispheres are large, which points to a possible evolution of the cometary surface. This comet appears to be very rich in CO2 and ethane. Heavy oxygenated compounds such as ethylene glycol are underabundant at 3 AU, probably due to their high sublimation temperatures, but nevertheless, their presence proves that Kuiper belt comets also contain complex organic molecules.

Molecular nitrogen in comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko indicates a low formation temperature

Making comets in the cold The speciation of nitrogen compounds in comets can tell us about their history. Comets are some of the most ancient bodies in the solar system and should contain the nitrogen compounds that were abundant when they formed. Using the ROSINA mass spectrometer aboard the Rosetta spacecraft orbiting comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Rubin et al. found molecular nitrogen at levels that are depleted compared to those in the primordial solar system. Depletion of such a magnitude suggests that the comet formed either from the low-temperature agglomeration of pristine amorphous water ice grains or from clathrates. Science, this issue p. 232 Direct measurements of N2 by instruments aboard the Rosetta spacecraft provide clues about the comet’s long history. Molecular nitrogen (N2) is thought to have been the most abundant form of nitrogen in the protosolar nebula. It is the main N-bearing molecule in the atmospheres of Pluto and Triton and probably the main nitrogen reservoir from which the giant planets formed. Yet in comets, often considered the most primitive bodies in the solar system, N2 has not been detected. Here we report the direct in situ measurement of N2 in the Jupiter family comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, made by the Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis mass spectrometer aboard the Rosetta spacecraft. A N2/CO ratio of (5.70±0.66)×10−3 (2σ standard deviation of the sampled mean) corresponds to depletion by a factor of ~25.4 ± 8.9 as compared to the protosolar value. This depletion suggests that cometary grains formed at low-temperature conditions below ~30 kelvin.

Abundant molecular oxygen in the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

The composition of the neutral gas comas of most comets is dominated by H2O, CO and CO2, typically comprising as much as 95 per cent of the total gas density. In addition, cometary comas have been found to contain a rich array of other molecules, including sulfuric compounds and complex hydrocarbons. Molecular oxygen (O2), however, despite its detection on other icy bodies such as the moons of Jupiter and Saturn, has remained undetected in cometary comas. Here we report in situ measurement of O2 in the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko, with local abundances ranging from one per cent to ten per cent relative to H2O and with a mean value of 3.80 ± 0.85 per cent. Our observations indicate that the O2/H2O ratio is isotropic in the coma and does not change systematically with heliocentric distance. This suggests that primordial O2 was incorporated into the nucleus during the comet’s formation, which is unexpected given the low upper limits from remote sensing observations. Current Solar System formation models do not predict conditions that would allow this to occur.

Prebiotic chemicals—amino acid and phosphorus—in the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

The detection of glycine and phosphorus in the coma of 67P shows that comets contain all ingredients to help spark life on Earth. The importance of comets for the origin of life on Earth has been advocated for many decades. Amino acids are key ingredients in chemistry, leading to life as we know it. Many primitive meteorites contain amino acids, and it is generally believed that these are formed by aqueous alterations. In the collector aerogel and foil samples of the Stardust mission after the flyby at comet Wild 2, the simplest form of amino acids, glycine, has been found together with precursor molecules methylamine and ethylamine. Because of contamination issues of the samples, a cometary origin was deduced from the 13C isotopic signature. We report the presence of volatile glycine accompanied by methylamine and ethylamine in the coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko measured by the ROSINA (Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis) mass spectrometer, confirming the Stardust results. Together with the detection of phosphorus and a multitude of organic molecules, this result demonstrates that comets could have played a crucial role in the emergence of life on Earth.

Comparison of 3D kinetic and hydrodynamic models to ROSINA-COPS measurements of the neutral coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (hereafter 67P) is a Jupiter-family comet and the object of investigation of the European Space Agency mission Rosetta. This report presents the first full 3D simulation results of 67P’s neutral gas coma. In this study we include results from a direct simulation Monte Carlo method, a hydrodynamic code, and a purely geometric calculation which computes the total illuminated surface area on the nucleus. All models include the triangulated 3D shape model of 67P as well as realistic illumination and shadowing conditions. The basic concept is the assumption that these illumination conditions on the nucleus are the main driver for the gas activity of the comet. As a consequence, the total production rate of 67P varies as a function of solar insolation. The best agreement between the model and the data is achieved when gas fluxes on the night side are in the range of 7% to 10% of the maximum flux, accounting for contributions from the most volatile components. To validate the output of our numerical simulations we compare the results of all three models to in situ gas number density measurements from the ROSINA COPS instrument. We are able to reproduce the overall features of these local neutral number density measurements of ROSINA COPS for the time period between early August 2014 and January 1 2015 with all three models. Some details in the measurements are not reproduced and warrant further investigation and refinement of the models. However, the overall assumption that illumination conditions on the nucleus are at least an important driver of the gas activity is validated by the models. According to our simulation results we find the total production rate of 67P to be constant between August and November 2014 with a value of about 1 × 1026 molecules s−1.

Three-dimensional direct simulation Monte-Carlo modeling of the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko observed by the VIRTIS and ROSINA instruments on board Rosetta

Since its rendezvous with comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (67P), the Rosetta spacecraft has provided invaluable information contributing to our understanding of the cometary environment. On board, the VIRTIS and ROSINA instruments can both measure gas parameters in the rarefied cometary atmosphere, the so-called coma, and provide complementary results with remote sensing and in situ measurement techniques, respectively. The data from both ROSINA and VIRTIS instruments suggest that the source regions of H2O and CO2 are not uniformly distributed over the surface of the nucleus even after accounting for the changing solar illumination of the irregularly shaped rotating nucleus. The source regions of H2O and CO2 are also relatively different from one another. Aims. The use of a combination of a formal numerical data inversion method with a fully kinetic coma model is a way to correlate and interpret the information provided by these two instruments to fully understand the volatile environment and activity of comet 67P. Methods. In this work, the nonuniformity of the outgassing activity at the surface of the nucleus is described by spherical harmonics and constrained by ROSINA-DFMS data. This activity distribution is coupled with the local illumination to describe the inner boundary conditions of a 3D direct simulation Monte-Carlo (DSMC) approach using the Adaptive Mesh Particle Simulator (AMPS) code applied to the H2O and CO2 coma of comet 67P. Results. We obtain activity distribution of H2O and CO2 showing a dominant source of H2O in the Hapi region, while more CO2 is produced in the southern hemisphere. The resulting model outputs are analyzed and compared with VIRTIS-M/-H and ROSINA-DFMS measurements, showing much better agreement between model and data than a simpler model assuming a uniform surface activity. The evolution of the H2O and CO2 production rates with heliocentric distance are derived accurately from the coma model showing agreement between the observations from the different instruments and ground-based observations. Conclusions. We derive the activity distributions for H2O and CO2 at the surface of the nucleus described in spherical harmonics, which we couple to the local solar illumination to constitute the boundary conditions of our coma model. The model presented reproduces the coma observations made by the ROSINA and VIRTIS instruments on board the Rosetta spacecraft showing our understanding of the physics of 67P’s coma. This model can be used for further data analyses, such as dust modeling, in a future work.

Performance evaluation of a miniature laser ablation time-of-flight mass spectrometer designed for in situ investigations in planetary space research

Key performance features of a miniature laser ablation time-of-flight mass spectrometer designed for in situ investigations of the chemical composition of planetary surfaces are presented. This mass spectrometer is well suited for elemental and isotopic analysis of raw solid materials with high sensitivity and high spatial resolution. In this study, ultraviolet laser radiation with irradiances suitable for ablation (< 1 GW/cm(2)) is used to achieve stable ion formation and low sample consumption. In comparison to our previous laser ablation studies at infrared wavelengths, several improvements to the experimental setup have been made, which allow accurate control over the experimental conditions and good reproducibility of measurements. Current performance evaluations indicate significant improvements to several instrumental figures of merit. Calibration of the mass scale is performed within a mass accuracy (Δm/m) in the range of 100 ppm, and a typical mass resolution (m/Δm) ~600 is achieved at the lead mass peaks. At lower laser irradiances, the mass resolution is better, about (m/Δm) ~900 for lead, and limited by the laser pulse duration of 3 ns. The effective dynamic range of the instrument was enhanced from about 6 decades determined in previous study up to more than 8 decades at present. Current studies show high sensitivity in detection of both metallic and non-metallic elements. Their abundance down to tens of ppb can be measured together with their isotopic patterns. Due to strict control of the experimental parameters, e.g. laser characteristics, ion-optical parameters and sample position, by computer control, measurements can be performed with high reproducibility.

Detection of argon in the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

ROSINA/DFMS shows that comets of type 67P/CG likely did not significantly contribute to Earth’s volatile budget. Comets have been considered to be representative of icy planetesimals that may have contributed a significant fraction of the volatile inventory of the terrestrial planets. For example, comets must have brought some water to Earth. However, the magnitude of their contribution is still debated. We report the detection of argon and its relation to the water abundance in the Jupiter family comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko by in situ measurement of the Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis (ROSINA) mass spectrometer aboard the Rosetta spacecraft. Despite the very low intensity of the signal, argon is clearly identified by the exact determination of the mass of the isotope 36Ar and by the 36Ar/38Ar ratio. Because of time variability and spatial heterogeneity of the coma, only a range of the relative abundance of argon to water can be given. Nevertheless, this range confirms that comets of the type 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko cannot be the major source of Earth’s major volatiles.