4 research outputs found
Chemical telemetry of OH observed to measure interstellar magnetic fields
We present models for the chemistry in gas moving towards the ionization
front of an HII region. When it is far from the ionization front, the gas is
highly depleted of elements more massive than helium. However, as it approaches
the ionization front, ices are destroyed and species formed on the grain
surfaces are injected into the gas phase. Photodissociation removes gas phase
molecular species as the gas flows towards the ionization front. We identify
models for which the OH column densities are comparable to those measured in
observations undertaken to study the magnetic fields in star forming regions
and give results for the column densities of other species that should be
abundant if the observed OH arises through a combination of the liberation of
H2O from surfaces and photodissociation. They include CH3OH, H2CO, and H2S.
Observations of these other species may help establish the nature of the OH
spatial distribution in the clouds, which is important for the interpretation
of the magnetic field results.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures, accepted by Astrophysics and Space Scienc
Understanding the Chemical Complexity in Circumstellar Envelopes of C-rich AGB Stars: the Case of IRC +10216
The circumstellar envelopes of carbon-rich AGB stars show a chemical
complexity that is exemplified by the prototypical object IRC +10216, in which
about 60 different molecules have been detected to date. Most of these species
are carbon chains of the type CnH, CnH2, CnN, HCnN. We present the detection of
new species (CH2CHCN, CH2CN, H2CS, CH3CCH and C3O) achieved thanks to the
systematic observation of the full 3 mm window with the IRAM 30m telescope plus
some ARO 12m observations. All these species, known to exist in the
interstellar medium, are detected for the first time in a circumstellar
envelope around an AGB star. These five molecules are most likely formed in the
outer expanding envelope rather than in the stellar photosphere. A pure gas
phase chemical model of the circumstellar envelope is reasonably successful in
explaining the derived abundances, and additionally allows to elucidate the
chemical formation routes and to predict the spatial distribution of the
detected species.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures; to appear in Astrophysics and Space Science,
special issue of "Science with ALMA: a new era for Astrophysics" conference,
November, 13-17 2006, ed. R. Bachille
The UMIST database for astrochemistry 1999
Abstract. We report a new version of the UMIST database for astrochemistry. The previous (1995) version has been updated and its format has been revised. The database contains the rate coecients, tempera-ture ranges and { where available { the temperature dependence of 4113 gas-phase reactions important in astrophysical environments. The data involve 396 species and 12 elements. We have also tabulated permanent electric dipole moments of the neutral species and heats of formation. A new table lists the photo process cross sections (ionisation, dissociation, fragmentation) for a few species for which these quantities have been measured. Data for Deuterium fractionation are given in a separate table. Finally, a new online Java applet for data extraction has been created and its use is explained in detail. The de-tailed new datales and associated software are availabl