Extraterrestrial ices serve as both nurseries and carriers of prebiotic molecules. Gas molecules condense to create ices that can be processed using energy sources such as solar wind, cosmic rays, and ultraviolet photons that initiate chemistry toward more complex molecules. Ices can be found in interstellar clouds, comets, and Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs). In order to develop accurate astrobiological models regarding prebiotic molecules, an understanding of extraterrestrial ice chemistry is crucial. This presentation surveys developments in the understanding of the formation of biorelevant molecules in astrophysical ices by using low temperature space simulation experiments utilizing tunable photoionization coupled with reflectron time-of-flight mass spectrometry (PI-ReTOF-MS), which allows for isomer-selective product detection. In particular, phosphorus chemistry toward the formation of alkyl phosphonic/phosphoric acids and the synthesis of complex organic molecules (COMs) are discussed. This talk details the experimental astrochemistry laboratory and highlights recent findings and their importance to astrobiology. These experiments demonstrate how astrobiologically relevant molecules can be synthesized in extraterrestrial ices 5 K via non-equilibrium chemistry initiated by high energy ions and photons.

Investigating potential prebiotic molecules utilizing ice analogues in space simulation experiments

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.