| Name | DDT_dgarciah_3 |
| Title | Searching for complex fullerene-based molecules in the prototype fullerene Planetary Nebula IC 418 |
| URL | http://archives.esac.esa.int/hsa/whsa-tap-server/data?retrieval_type=OBSERVATION&observation_id=1342265942&instrument_name=PACS&product_level=LEVEL0&compress=true |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-c5vfw5s |
| Author | garcia-hernandez, d. a. |
| Description | The recent and unexpected detection of the most commonfullerenes (C60 and C70) and proto-graphene in some Planetary Nebulae (PNe) raises the exciting possibility that other more complex fullerene-based molecules (e.g., carbon onions or multishell fullerenes, fullerene-adducts) might be ubiquitous inthe Universe and continue to be serious candidates toexplain many astrophysical phenomena. The presence ofcomplex fullerene-based molecules such as carbon onions in the circumstellar shells of fullerene-containing PNe is strongly suggested by ourrecent analysis of the unusual diffuse interstellar bands detected towards two PNe where C60 had already been found. If complex fullerene-based molecules suchas carbon onions are present in this peculiarclass of stars, they could easily be detected in the far-IR range. Fullerene-containing PNe are usually very faint in the far-IR but our very recent detectionof C60 fullerenes in PN IC 418 can now mitigate this unfortunate situation. Surprisingly, Herschel has not observed this very bright source - now considered the prototype fullerene-containing PN - as part of any approved program in previous cycles. Thus, a comprehensive far-IR study of the complex circumstellar environmentwhere fullerenes and fullerene-based molecules may form is at present lacking. With this DDT proposal we aim at obtaining full range, high S/N, Herschel/PACS far-IR spectra of PN IC 418 to search for the spectral signatures of complex fullerene-basedmolecules such as multishell fullerenes (e.g., C60@C240, C240@C960), which are predicted to be detectable as relatively strong broad features in thefar-IR range. If successful, these observations will constitute the first firm detection of the most complex molecules ever detected in space. In addition,we will search for the predicted hydrogenated amorphous carbon (HAC) associated feature at ~60 um toconfirm/refute the HACs processing/decomposition scenario as the preferred fullerene formation route inPNe. |
| Publication |
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| Instrument | PACS_PacsRangeSpec_point |
| Temporal Coverage | 2013-03-04T21:07:10Z/2013-03-05T01:26:32Z |
| Version | SPG v14.2.0 |
| Mission Description | Herschel was launched on 14 May 2009! It is the fourth cornerstone mission in the ESA science programme. With a 3.5 m Cassegrain telescope it is the largest space telescope ever launched. It is performing photometry and spectroscopy in approximately the 55-671 µm range, bridging the gap between earlier infrared space missions and groundbased facilities. |
| Creator Contact | https://support.cosmos.esa.int/h®erschel/ |
| Date Published | 2013-09-04T23:00:26Z |
| Last Update | 2025-01-24 |
| Keywords | Herschel, HSC, submillimetre, far-infrared, HIFI, PACS, SPIRE |
| Publisher And Registrant | European Space Agency |
| Credit Guidelines | European Space Agency, garcia-hernandez et al., 2013, 'Searching for complex fullerene-based molecules in the prototype fullerene Planetary Nebula IC 418', SPG v14.2.0, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-c5vfw5s |