title: Deuterium in comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp): detection of DCN.
abstract: Deuterated hydrogen cyanide (DCN) was detected in a comet, C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp), with the use of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The inferred deuterium/hydrogen (D/H) ratio in hydrogen cyanide (HCN) is (D/H)HCN = (2.3 +/- 0.4) x 10(-3). This ratio is higher than the D/H ratio found in cometary water and supports the interstellar origin of cometary ices. The observed values of D/H in water and HCN imply a kinetic temperature >/=30 +/- 10 K in the fragment of interstellar cloud that formed the solar system.
authors.affiliation: University of Hawaii, Institute for Astronomy, 2680 Woodlawn Drive, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA. meier@uhifa.ifa.hawaii.edu
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Meier
authors.forename: T C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Owen
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Jewitt
authors.forename: H E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Matthews
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Senay
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Biver
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bockel e-Morvan
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Crovisier
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gautier
mesh_terms: D003903:Deuterium / Q000032:analysis*; D006856:Hydrogen Cyanide / Q000032:analysis*; D007053:Ice; D019110:Meteoroids; D013696:Temperature; D014867:Water
chemical_list: D007053:Ice; D014867:Water; D006856:Hydrogen Cyanide; D003903:Deuterium