Astrochemistry comets

Throughout the book I have tried to constrain the wonders of imagination inspired by the subject by using simple calculations. Can all of the water on the Earth have been delivered by comets if so, how many comets How do I use molecular spectroscopy to work out what is happening in a giant molecular cloud Calculations form part of the big hard-sell for astrochemistry and they provide a powerful control against myth. I have aimed the book at second-year undergraduates who have had some exposure to quantum mechanics, kinetics, thermodynamics and mathematics but the book could easily be adapted as an introduction to all of these areas for a minor course in chemistry to stand alone. 

The purpose of Chemistry of Space is to provide an overview of the latest information about the solar system, the planets, comets, and meteors, and other features of our universe that has become available as a result of research in astrochemistry. This information changes rapidly, however. New space probes are being sent into the solar system and outer space on a regular basis each such probe sends back new treasure troves of information about astronomical bodies. Interested readers will find useful and recent data in this book but should consider using the bibliographical section at the end of the book to pursue further changes taking place within the field. 

The astrochemistry of ions may be divided into topics of interstellar clouds, stellar atmospheres, planetary atmospheres and comets. There are many areas of astrophysics (stars, planetary nebulae, novae, supemovae) where highly ionized species are important, but beyond the scope of ion chemistry . (Still, molecules, including H2O, are observed in solar spectra [1551 and a surprise in the study of Supernova 1987A was the identification of molecular species, CO, SiO and possibly H [I56, 157]. ) In the early universe, after expansion... 

Astrochemistry is a field that spans virtually all cosmic environments, from comets and planetary atmospheres to... 

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