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Detection Of Carbonates In Dust Shells Around Evolved Stars.

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Detection Of Carbonates In Dust Shells Around Evolved Stars.

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Detection of carbonates in dust shells around evolved stars.

F Kemper¹, C Jäger, L B F M Waters

¹Astronomical Institute "Anton Pannekoek", University of Amsterdam, Kruislaan 403, 1098 SJ Amsterdam, The Netherlands. ciska@science.uva.nl

|January 18, 2002

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Carbonates discovered in evolved star dust shells challenge Solar System origins. These extraterrestrial carbonates formed without liquid water, suggesting non-aqueous processes may create them, impacting our understanding of early Solar System bodies.

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Area of Science:

Astrochemistry
Planetary Science
Cosmochemistry

Background:

Carbonates on Earth and Mars form via silicate weathering in aqueous solutions.
Carbonates in asteroids and interplanetary dust are often attributed to aqueous alteration of parent bodies.
The presence of carbonates beyond the Solar System has remained unconfirmed until now.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the presence and formation mechanisms of carbonates outside the Solar System.
To determine if carbonates can form in environments lacking liquid water.
To re-evaluate the implications of Solar System carbonates for the presence of early liquid water.

Main Methods:

Analysis of dust shells surrounding evolved stars.
Spectroscopic identification of carbonate minerals (calcite and dolomite).

Main Results:

Discovery of calcite and dolomite in the dust shells of evolved stars.
These extraterrestrial carbonates were found in conditions too primitive for large parent bodies with liquid water.
The formation mechanism is likely non-aqueous, possibly involving surface processes on dust/ice grains or gas-phase condensation.

Conclusions:

Carbonates can form through non-aqueous processes in interstellar environments.
The presence of carbonates in Solar System bodies may not exclusively indicate past liquid water.
This finding broadens the understanding of carbonate formation pathways in the cosmos.