nai

Project Reports

• Studies of the Influence of X-Rays on the Environment of Stars in the Prebiotic Molecule Formation Era

  To produce pre-biotic materials in the cold circumstellar environment of the young Sun, high energy radiation may be required to stimulate chemical reactions of molecules.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1

• The Evolution of Organics in Space

  Understanding the nature of the natal interstellar cloud is crucial to understanding the chemistry of the solar nebula, and hence the chemistry of the Sun and planets. Since that cloud no longer exists, it is necessary to study the cores of existing dense interstellar clouds where stars are forming.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1

• Studies of Oxidized Carbon in Cometary Ice

  The second year accomplishments of Dr. Michael DiSanti (Co-I, Goddard Center for Astrobiology, NAI) fall into two distinct although related categories: (1) Ongoing research on the organic volatile composition of comets, and (2) E/PO-related activities

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1

• Extrasolar Planets

  The existence of close-in extrasolar planets provides an opportunity to evaluate the delivery of water and pre-biotic molecules to planets, via collisions in the early stages of planet formation. Over 150 planets are known to orbit stars other than the sun, and many of these extrasolar planets occur quite close to their stars and have orbital periods of only a few days.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.2

• Establishment of the Goddard Analytical Astrobiology Laboratory

  This year Dworkin finalized construction of the laboratory infrastructure in Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) building 2, room W109.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1 3.3 3.4

• Laser Mass Spectrometry Technique Development for Analysis of Complex Organics in Cometary and Meteritic Materials

  Theme 4 work at JHU/APL using laser time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) techniques continues in collaboration with the GCA team and external partners.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1 7.1

• Cosmic Ice Laboratory: Organic Synthesis in Energetically Processed Ices

  In the Cosmic Ice Laboratory we simulate the low-pressure and temperature environment of space using a high-vacuum chamber and a cryostat. Ice samples condensed onto a cooled mirror inside the cryostat are irradiated with 1-MeV protons, to simulate cosmic-ray bombardment, or are photolyzed to simulate vacuum-UV exposure.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.2 3.1 7.1

• Chemical Models of Nebular Processes

  The goal of this task is to determine the chemical composition of icy bodies and establish their potential for delivering pre-biotic organic materials and water to the young Earth and other planets.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 3.1

• Origin and Evloution of Organics in Planetary Systems

  This progress report summarizes astrobiology research done during the first year of funding from the NASA Astrobiology Institute at Washington University in St. Louis under the direction of Professor Bruce Fegley, Jr

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 3.1

• Numerical Simulations of Planetary Dynamics

  First, he completed simulations from his thesis work on the mechanism of giant planet migration in a gaseous circumstellar disk. His results agree partially with previous simulations using a different numerical technique, suggesting that giant planets should migrate quickly toward their parent star, possibly creating a gap in the gas disk.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1

• A New Paradigm for Organic Chemistry in the Nebula: Protostars as Chemical Factories

  Protostellar nebulae are oxygen rich, yet a significant quantity of organic matter is still evident in meteorites and in comets when one might predict that such materials should have reacted with the silicate dust to form large amounts of CO.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1

• Origin and Evolution of Organics in Planetary Systems

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 2.2 3.1

• Planetary Science and Astrobiology Seminars

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: None Selected

• The Organic Volatile Composition of Comets: A Window on the Early Solar System

  Our long-range objective is to establish a taxonomy for comets based on chemistry, rather than orbital dynamics. The formation temperature of a given comet can be constrained by measures of the ortho-para ratios in H₂O and by the isotopic enhancements (e.g., in deuterium) in selected volatile species.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 2.1 3.1 4.1 4.3

• VLA Observations of the Hot Molecular Core in the Young Stellar Object IRAS 16293-2422 and Proper Motions in the Orion Nebula

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1

• Methane on Mars: NAI Distributed Workshop

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: None Selected

• In Situ Measurements Protocols and Techniques for Analysis of Organics in Comets

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1

• Identification of Chemical Characteristics of Basin-Forming Impactors on the Moon

  The purpose of this work is to fingerprint the late additions to the Moon using the relative abundances of the highly-siderophile elements (HSE) that occur in generally high abundance in likely impactors, but extremely low abundance in the indigenous lunar crust.

  ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: None Selected