Hydrogen in Interstellar Ice Mantles

NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, captured this colorful image of the reflection nebula IRAS 12116-6001. This cloud of interstellar dust cannot be seen directly in visible light, but WISE’s detectors observed the nebula at infrared wavelengths. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

Researchers have developed a numerical model that could provide information about how hydrogen molecules diffuse on the surface of ice mantles on interstellar grains. Ice mantles cover the core of dust grains in dense interstellar clouds, and usually the main component of these mantles is water. According to the scientists, the method could be particularly useful in studying conditions that occur in the collapse of dense cores and the formation of protoplanetary disks.

The paper, “A new and simple approach to determine the abundance of hydrogen molecules on interstellar ice mantles,” was published in the journalAstronomy & Astrophysics.

Source: [Astronomy & Astrophysics]