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Anomalous nitrogen isotope ratio in comets.

Claude Arpigny¹, Emmanuël Jehin, Jean Manfroid

¹Institut d'Astrophysique et de Géophysique, Sart-Tilman, Bâtiment B5c, B-4000 Liège, Belgium. Claude.Arpigny@ulg.ac.be

Science (New York, N.Y.)

|September 13, 2003

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Cometary nitrogen isotope ratios, measured using high-resolution spectra, are lower than Earth's. This suggests comets contain other nitrogen sources beyond HCN, possibly organic compounds.

Area of Science:

Astronomy and Astrophysics
Planetary Science
Spectroscopy

Background:

Cometary composition provides insights into the early Solar System.
Isotopic ratios in comets can reveal their origin and chemical evolution.
The CN molecule is a common tracer in cometary comae.

Purpose of the Study:

To determine the isotopic ratios of carbon (12C/13C) and nitrogen (14N/15N) in comets C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) and C/2000 WM1 (LINEAR).
To investigate potential anomalies in cometary isotopic composition compared to terrestrial values.
To identify possible parent molecules of the CN radical in comets.

Main Methods:

High-resolution spectroscopy of the CN B2+-X2+ (0,0) band at 390 nm.
Analysis of spectral data to derive 12C/13C and 14N/15N isotopic ratios.

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Comparison of cometary isotopic ratios with terrestrial standards and other cometary measurements.

Main Results:

Measured 12C/13C ratios for Hale-Bopp and LINEAR were 165 +/- 40 and 115 +/- 20, respectively.
Measured 14N/15N ratios for Hale-Bopp and LINEAR were 140 +/- 35 and 140 +/- 30, respectively.
The measured 14N/15N ratios are significantly lower than the terrestrial value (272) and previously reported ratios for Hale-Bopp from HCN.

Conclusions:

The anomalous nitrogen isotopic ratios suggest that CN in these comets originates from parent molecules other than HCN.
The presence of parent molecules with even lower 14N/15N ratios is indicated.
Organic compounds, potentially similar to those found in interplanetary dust particles, are plausible candidates for these alternative CN parent species.