Aarhus Universitets segl

New center article - Katie Slavicinska

Title: Ammonium hydrosulfide (NH4SH) as a potentially significant sulfur sink in interstellar ices

Image of star formation and comet
Composite image of a star-forming region (left) and Comet 67P (right). (c) NASA/ESA/CSA/M. Zamani (ESA/Webb); ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM; K. Slavicinska

Summary:

An international team led by astronomers at Leiden University has shown in laboratory experiments that sulfur can bind with ammonium under icy cosmic conditions and form a salt that sticks to dust and pebbles. The resulting sulfur salt not only helps to explain the mystery of the missing sulfur gas, but also a puzzling peak in data from the James Webb Space Telescope's MIRI instrument and other telescopes.

View paper here

Press release