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Detailed Reference Information |
Thompson, W.R., Singh, S.K., Khare, B.N. and Sagan, C. (1989). Triton: Stratospheric molecules and organic sediments. Geophysical Research Letters 16: doi: 10.1029/89GL01415. issn: 0094-8276. |
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Hydrocarbons and nitriles are produced in Triton's stratosphere by energetic electrons from Neptune's magnetosphere and other charged particle sources. Laboratory plasma experiments reported here show a substantial yield of molecules from low-pressure flows of 10-3 CH4 in N2 appropriate to Triton if both CH4 and N2 are saturated at the surface. An active magnetosphere similar to that of Uranus would result in a flux ~0.3 erg cm-2 s-1 of 0.1--1 MeV electrons in Triton's stratosphere; molecular production rates are then 106--108 cm-2 s-1 for NH3, C2H2, HCN, and NCCN; tens to hundreds of gm cm-2 of these compounds per 109 yr (and lesser quantities of at last eight other molecules experimentally detected) would freeze to fine-grained white condensates in the lower stratosphere and sediment to the surface. Along with dark/colored organic haze produced in the stratosphere and other heteropolymers produced at the surface, these condensates are subject to redistribution by aeolian processes and may appear as lag deposits and/or sediment layers. A simple eddy diffusion model indicates abundances ~1019 molec cm-2 for HCN and C2H2, and >1017 molec cm-2 for NCCN, CH3CCH, CH2CCH2, and CH3CN in the stratosphere; these and other organic molecules will be detectable by IRIS if the stratosphere is (as expected) heated through ultraviolet and visible light absorption by the haze. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1989 |
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Abstract![](/images/icons/spacer.gif) |
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Keywords
Planetology, Fluid Planets, Meteorology |
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Publisher
American Geophysical Union 2000 Florida Avenue N.W. Washington, D.C. 20009-1277 USA 1-202-462-6900 1-202-328-0566 service@agu.org |
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