HCN formation on Jupiter - The coupled photochemistry of ammonia and Acetylene

HCN formation in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere of Jupiter is presently modeled in terms of UV pyrolysis of the C2H5N isomer aziridine, which is a product of the NH2 and C2H3 radicals that originate from ammonia photolysis and the addition of H atoms to acetylene, respectively. The sensitivity of the HCN column density to the individual rate constants and the eddy diffusion coefficient profile is considered, along with the possibility that additional HCN-yielding pathways may exist. Both ammonia and phosphine are strongly depleted by photolysis.