Astrophysical ice from molecular to planetary scales

In interstellar and circumstellar environments, most volatile molecules exist as an amorphous molecular solid referred to as astrophysical ice. This icy material is one of the major building blocks in the formation of new solar systems, and its properties shape the composition and potential habitability of nascent planets. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has recently opened the door to spectroscopically probing the ices present in proto-planetary environments around young stars; I will describe how we are using these observational capabilities to reveal the intriguing chemistry and microphysics of protoplanetary ices for the first time. Alongside these observational efforts, we are developing new experimental capabilities to characterize the structure, microphysics, and chemical evolution of amorphous ices, with wide-ranging implications for our understanding of icy planetary building blocks as well as the fundamental interactions of small molecules within these disordered structures.

Speaker: Jennifer Bergner, UC Berkeley