A First Attempt to Simulate the Natural Formation of Meteoritic OrganicsOur working hypothesis in these experiments is that meteoritic organics are a mixture of materials made both in the interstellar medium and in the solar nebula that were further processed within meteorite parent bodies to produce what we see today. The material synthesized in the pre-solar environment is currently under study in several laboratories, though to our knowledge none are investigating the changes that might occur as the result of metamorphic processes on the parent body itself. Material made in the Solar Nebula results from a Fischer-Tropsch type (FTT) synthesis as CO and H2 react on grain surfaces to make methane, as well as more complex species. The products of these reactions using natural catalysts have been well-studied and a calculation of the potential efficiency of FTT reactions in the solar nebula demonstrates that they could contribute significantly to the composition of material near 3 AU.
Document ID
20030111096
Acquisition Source
Headquarters
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Gardner, Kathryn (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Li, Jean (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Dworkin, Jason (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Cody, George D. (Carnegie Institution of Washington Washington, DC, United States)
Johnson, Natasha (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Nuth, Joseph A., III (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)