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The D to H ratio on Titan and the planets: Implications for origin and evolution of planetary atmospheresMeasurements of deuterated methane show that Titan's atmosphere is enriched by at least several times in deuterium compared to the major planets. Potential causative factors for this enrichment are condensation to form tropospheric methane clouds, fractionation occuring over a hypothetical CH4-C2H2 ocean and between the ocean and the clathrate crust beneath, fractionation which occurred during the formation of Titan and fractionation occuring as a result of the evolution of Titan's atmosphere. The greater part of the observed fractionation is probably derived from the formation of Titan and the subsequent evolution of Titan atmosphere driven by photochemistry. The latter process is developed here for the first time. The D/H ratio in a planetary atmosphere is one readily available measure of the origin and evolution of the hydrogen bearing volatiles on the planet. Comparison between D/H ratio in the inner solar system and the outer solar system may pose important constraints on current theories.
Document ID
19860017381
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Pinto, J. P.
(Harvard Univ. Cambridge, MA, United States)
Lunine, J. I.
(California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, United States)
Kim, S. J.
(Harvard Univ. Cambridge, MA, United States)
Yung, Y. L.
(Harvard Univ. Cambridge, MA, United States)
Date Acquired
August 12, 2013
Publication Date
May 1, 1986
Publication Information
Publication: NASA, Washington Second Symposium on Chemical Evolution and the Origin and Evolution of Life
Subject Category
Space Biology
Accession Number
86N26853
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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