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Identification of Ammonium Salts on Comet 67P/C-G Surface from Infrared VIRTIS/Rosetta Data Based on Laboratory Experiments. Implications and Perspectives

Longobardo, Andrea; Palomba, Ernesto; Schmitt, Bernard +29 more

The nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko exhibits a broad spectral reflectance feature around 3.2 µm, which is omnipresent in all spectra of the surface, and whose attribution has remained elusive since its discovery. Based on laboratory experiments, we have shown that most of this absorption feature is due to ammonium (NH₄^+<…

Insight into the Origin of Cometary Ices from Rosetta/ROSINA Mass Spectrometer Data

Rubin, Martin

Here we review some of the major findings of the mass spectrometer suite ROSINA on board of ESA's Rosetta spacecraft to comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. For more than 2 years, ROSINA continuously measured the composition of the gases sublimating from the comet's nucleus. ROSINA measurements provided insight into the origin of the ices in 67P/Chury…