| Title: | Potential C-N bonded coumpounds in the plumes of Enceladus |
| Authors: | Thomas O'Sullivan, Author |
| Material Type: | ISU Individual Project |
| Publisher: | Illkirch-Graffenstaden (France) : International Space University, 2022 |
| Size: | 1 electronic resource (58 p.) / col. ill. |
| Bibliography note: | Includes bibliographical references |
| Languages: | English |
| Description: | Enceladus is a small moon of Saturn and one of the best candidates for extraterrestrial life in the Solar System, particularly since the Cassini mission discovered plumes emanating from the southern pole. Many detailed investigations into the physical and chemical processes driving these eruptions have taken place, with new studies suggesting that C-N bonded compounds may be present in a subsurface ocean. The possible presence of C-N bonded compounds in the plumes and the ocean offers a significant possibility that more complex organic molecules could be present below and atop the surface. They offer significant implications for the presence of more complex molecules like peptides and proteins and the habitability of Enceladus. Khawaja et al. (2019) suggested the presence of low-mass organic compounds in the plumes and postulated their origin as fragments of larger macromolecules discovered by Postberg et al. (2018b). This project details the conditions, properties, and astrochemistry that make complex organic chemical syntheses a possibility. The report explores several pathways for the potential synthesis of amino acids. Photochemical reactions on ice surfaces induce organic synthesis in the interstellar medium and on asteroids. Radiation-driven synthesis is a plausibility for the synthesis of amino acids. The report discusses hydrothermal activity occurring at and near the ocean-rock interface and hydrothermal vents near the core of Enceladus. This project also tackles the issue of spacecraft data contamination and ice-ocean exchange processes. |
| ISU program : | Master of Space Studies |
| Permalink: | https://isulibrary.isunet.edu/index.php?lvl=notice_display&id=11546 |
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 O'Sullivan, Thomas_IP (13.7 MB) Adobe Acrobat PDF |
