Detection of carbon dioxide and hydrogen peroxide on the stratified surface of Charon with JWST

Silvia Protopapa (), Ujjwal Raut, Ian Wong, John Stansberry, Geronimo L. Villanueva, Jason Cook, Bryan Holler, William M. Grundy, Rosario Brunetto, Richard J. Cartwright, Bereket Mamo, Joshua P. Emery, Alex H. Parker, Aurelie Guilbert-Lepoutre, Noemi Pinilla-Alonso, Stefanie N. Milam and Heidi B. Hammel
Additional contact information
Silvia Protopapa: Southwest Research Institute
Ujjwal Raut: Southwest Research Institute
Ian Wong: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
John Stansberry: Space Telescope Science Institute
Geronimo L. Villanueva: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Jason Cook: Pinhead Institute
Bryan Holler: Space Telescope Science Institute
William M. Grundy: Lowell Observatory
Rosario Brunetto: Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale
Richard J. Cartwright: Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Bereket Mamo: Southwest Research Institute
Joshua P. Emery: Northern Arizona University
Alex H. Parker: SETI Institute
Aurelie Guilbert-Lepoutre: Université Lyon 1, ENS
Noemi Pinilla-Alonso: University of Central Florida
Stefanie N. Milam: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Heidi B. Hammel: Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract Charon, Pluto’s largest moon, has been extensively studied, with research focusing on its primitive composition and changes due to radiation and photolysis. However, spectral data have so far been limited to wavelengths below 2.5 μm, leaving key aspects unresolved. Here we present the detection of carbon dioxide (CO2) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) on the surface of Charon’s northern hemisphere, using JWST data. These detections add to the known chemical inventory that includes crystalline water ice, ammonia-bearing species, and tholin-like darkening constituents previously revealed by ground- and space-based observations. The H2O2 presence indicates active radiolytic/photolytic processing of the water ice-rich surface by solar ultraviolet and interplanetary medium Lyman-α photons, solar wind, and galactic cosmic rays. Through spectral modeling of the surface, we show that the CO2 is present in pure crystalline form and, possibly, in intimately mixed states on the surface. Endogenically sourced subsurface CO2 exposed on the surface is likely the primary source of this component, with possible contributions from irradiation of hydrocarbons mixed with water ice, interfacial radiolysis between carbon deposits and water ice, and the implantation of energetic carbon ions from the solar wind and solar energetic particles.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-51826-4

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