The oxygen isotopic composition (18O/16O) in the dust of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko measured by COSIMA on-board Rosetta
: J A Paquette, C Engrand, M Hilchenbach, N Fray, O J Stenzel, J Silen, J Rynö, J Kissel; The Cosima Team
: 2018
: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
: 477
: 3
: 3836
: 3844
: 9
: 0035-8711
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sty560
: https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article-abstract/477/3/3836/4931762?redirectedFrom=fulltext
: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/38997107
The oxygen isotopic ratio 18O/16O has been
measured in cometary gas for a wide variety of comets, but the only
measurements in cometary dust were performed by the Stardust cometary
sample return mission. Most such measurements find a value of the ratio
that is consistent with Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water (VSMOW) within
errors. In this work we present the result of a measurement, using the
COSIMA (the COmetary Secondary Ion Mass Analyser) instrument on the
Rosetta orbiter, of the oxygen isotopic ratio in dust from Comet
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Measuring the 18O/16O
ratio with COSIMA is challenging for a number of reasons, but it is
possible with a reasonable degree of precision. We find a result of
2.00 × 10−3 ± 1.2 × 10−4, which is consistent within errors with VSMOW.
