Free Astronomy Magazine September-October 2023

44 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2023 ASTRO PUBLISHING suspect that CH 3 + forms a corner- stone of interstellar organic chem- istry. The unique capabilities of Webb made it the ideal observatory to search for this crucial molecule. Webb’s exquisite spatial and spectral resolution, as well as its sensitivity, all contributed to the team’s success. In particular, Webb’s detection of a series of key emission lines from CH 3 + cemented the discovery. “This detection not only validates the incredible sensitivity of Webb but also confirms the postulated Webb makes first detection of crucial carbon molecule by NASA/ESA/CSA Bethany Downer Christine Pulliam A team of international scien- tists has used NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to detect a new carbon compound in space for the first time. Known as methyl cation (pronounced cat-eye- on) (CH 3 + ), the molecule is important because it aids the formation of more complex carbon-based mole- cules. Methyl cation was detected in a young star system, with a proto- planetary disk, known as d203-506, which is located about 1,350 light- years away in the Orion Nebula. Carbon compounds form the foun- dations of all known life, and as such are particularly interesting to scien- tists working to understand both how life developed on Earth, and how it could potentially develop elsewhere in our universe. The study of interstellar organic (car- bon-containing) chemistry, which Webb is opening in new ways, is an area of keen fascination to many as- tronomers. CH 3 + is theorized to be particularly important because it re- acts readily with a wide range of other molecules. As a result, it acts like a “train station” where a mole- cule can remain for a time before going in one of many different di- rections to react with other mole- cules. Due to this property, scientists T he right panel shows a part of the Orion Nebula known as the Orion Bar. It is a region where energetic ultraviolet light from the Trapezium Cluster — located off the upper-left corner — inter- acts with dense molecular clouds. The energy of the stellar radiation is slowly eroding the Orion Bar, and this has a profound effect on the molecules and chemistry in the protoplanetary disks that have formed around newborn stars here. The largest image, on the left, is from Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) instrument. At upper right, the telescope is focused on a smaller area using Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument). A total of eighteen filters across both the MIRI and NIRCam instruments were used in these images, covering a range of wavelengths from 1.4 microns in the near-infrared to 25.5 microns in the mid-infrared. At the very center of the MIRI area is a young star system with a planet-forming disk named d203-506. The pullout at the bottom right displays a combined NIRCam and MIRI image of this young system. Its extended shape is due to pressure from the harsh ultraviolet radiation striking it. An international team of astronomers detected a new carbon molecule known as methyl cation for the first time in d203-506. [ESA/Webb, NASA, CSA, M. Zamani (ESA/Webb), PDRs4ALL ERS Team] central importance of CH 3 + in interstellar chem- istry,” said Marie-Aline Martin-Drumel of the University of Paris-Saclay in France, a member of the science team. While the star in d203-506 is a small red dwarf, the sys- tem is bombarded by strong ultraviolet (UV) light from nearby hot, young, massive stars. Sci- entists believe that most NIRCam Near Infrared