OCEANS | Origin and Composition of Exocomets Around Nearby Stars

Summary
The presence of exocometary gas in young (10-100 Myr) debris disks presents a unique opportunity to probe the composition of exocomets during the late stages of terrestrial planet formation. This is the evolutionary stage when ice-rich impacts are proposed to change the volatile environment of terrestrial planets, setting the stage for prebiotic chemistry.
This action will establish a new paradigm of Exocometary Science as a unique tool for probing the composition of planetary systems in the crucial, last period of terrestrial planet formation. I will expand current observational approaches, focused on observations of CO gas at millimetre wavelengths, to UV and IR wavelengths, in order to access atomic and yet unseen molecular species, including water, to probe the entire chemical variety of exocomets. In doing so, I will exploit existing observational facilities and prepare for upcoming sensitive observatories such as JWST. Additionally, I will study the origin of exocomet compositions - so far consistent with Solar System comets - and their link to a potentially common belt formation location in young protoplanetary disks.
This action will set the stage for compositional inventories of exocomets, allowing us to put our Solar System comets into the broader context of extrasolar planetary systems, exoplanets and young disks, and providing a missing link in the study of planet formation and physical-chemical evolution.
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More information & hyperlinks
Web resources: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101031685
Start date: 01-09-2021
End date: 31-08-2023
Total budget - Public funding: 184 590,72 Euro - 184 590,00 Euro
Cordis data

Original description

The presence of exocometary gas in young (10-100 Myr) debris disks presents a unique opportunity to probe the composition of exocomets during the late stages of terrestrial planet formation. This is the evolutionary stage when ice-rich impacts are proposed to change the volatile environment of terrestrial planets, setting the stage for prebiotic chemistry.
This action will establish a new paradigm of Exocometary Science as a unique tool for probing the composition of planetary systems in the crucial, last period of terrestrial planet formation. I will expand current observational approaches, focused on observations of CO gas at millimetre wavelengths, to UV and IR wavelengths, in order to access atomic and yet unseen molecular species, including water, to probe the entire chemical variety of exocomets. In doing so, I will exploit existing observational facilities and prepare for upcoming sensitive observatories such as JWST. Additionally, I will study the origin of exocomet compositions - so far consistent with Solar System comets - and their link to a potentially common belt formation location in young protoplanetary disks.
This action will set the stage for compositional inventories of exocomets, allowing us to put our Solar System comets into the broader context of extrasolar planetary systems, exoplanets and young disks, and providing a missing link in the study of planet formation and physical-chemical evolution.

Status

TERMINATED

Call topic

MSCA-IF-2020

Update Date

28-04-2024
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Horizon 2020
H2020-EU.1. EXCELLENT SCIENCE
H2020-EU.1.3. EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
H2020-EU.1.3.2. Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
MSCA-IF-2020 Individual Fellowships