Properties of Interstellar Dust Grains

星际尘埃颗粒的特性

• 批准号: 146311118
• 负责人: Professor Dr. Jürgen Blum
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Institut für Geophysik und Extraterrestrische Physik
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Priority Programmes
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 德国
• 起止时间: 2009-12-31 至 2014-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/146311118?language=en
• 关键词: Properties; Interstellar; Dust; Grains

The main goal of the project is to identify grains of interstellar origin in the data set collected by the Cassini dust detector, which is capable to measure the dynamic properties and the composition of the impacting particles. The analysis of their mass spectra provides for the first time unequivocal information about the composition of solid material at the earliest phases of planet formation as well as about the production rates of galactic dust in carbon-rich stars, red giants, and supernovae. The current knowledge of the composition of interstellar dust (ISD) stemming dominantly from astronomical observations is extremely limited. The Stardust spaceprobe may have collected a few interstellar grains, but so far the examination team has not yet identified such grains within the aerogel samples. The dust instrument onboard the Cassini spaceprobe provides an unique opportunity to obtain in-situ ISD data because shortly after Cassini’s entry into its orbit around Saturn, the ISD observation conditions became favourable. Furthermore, ISD particles can be reliably identified in the Cassini data set because their kinematic and compositional properties are distinct from grains forming Saturn’s rings as well as from interplanetary grains.

该项目的主要目标是在卡西尼号尘埃探测器收集的数据集中确定星际起源的颗粒，该探测器能够测量撞击颗粒的动态特性和组成。对它们的质谱分析首次提供了关于行星形成最早阶段固体物质组成的明确信息，以及关于富碳恒星、红巨星和超新星中星系尘埃的产生率的信息。目前对星际尘埃（ISD）成分的了解主要来自天文观测，非常有限。星尘号太空探测器可能已经收集到了一些星际颗粒，但到目前为止，检查小组还没有在气凝胶样品中发现这种颗粒。卡西尼号空间探测器上的尘埃仪器提供了一个获得现场ISD数据的独特机会，因为卡西尼号进入土星轨道后不久，ISD观测条件变得有利。此外，ISD粒子可以在卡西尼号的数据集中可靠地识别出来，因为它们的运动学和成分特性与形成土星环的颗粒以及行星际颗粒不同。