2014/12/11 by K. Altwegg, H. Balsiger, A. Bar‐Nun +29 · 3 citations
Physics and Astronomy · Environmental Science · #Astro and Planetary Science #Isotope Analysis in Ecology #Planetary Science and Exploration
paper · doi:10.1126/science.1261952
openalex publication_date 2014/12/11 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
The provenance of water and organic compounds on Earth and other terrestrial planets has been discussed for a long time without reaching a consensus. One of the best means to distinguish between different scenarios is by determining the deuterium-to-hydrogen (D/H) ratios in the reservoirs for comets and Earth's oceans. Here, we report the direct in situ measurement of the D/H ratio in the Jupiter family comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko by the ROSINA mass spectrometer aboard the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft, which is found to be (5.3 ± 0.7) × 10(-4)—that is, approximately three times the terrestrial value. Previous cometary measurements and our new finding suggest a wide range of D/H ratios in the water within Jupiter family objects and preclude the idea that this reservoir is solely composed of Earth ocean-like water.