Overview
- A peer-reviewed study reports a deuterium-to-hydrogen ratio of about 6.6×10^-3 in the comet’s water, roughly 40 times Earth’s oceans and about 30 times typical Solar System comets.
- Scientists say such strong deuterium enrichment points to formation in a much colder, low-radiation region on the outer edge of a protoplanetary disk.
- The team measured deuterated water in the gas around the nucleus using the ALMA radio array, with supporting observations from the University of Michigan’s MDM Observatory.
- Other data show unusually high carbon dioxide ice and strong methanol outgassing, marking a volatile mix unlike most comets born in our Solar System.
- 3I/ATLAS is only the third known interstellar visitor, it is now heading back into deep space, and its exact home star remains unknown.