ASTROPHYSICS: RESEARCH ON ASTROPHYSICS DESCRIBED BY A.G. YEGHIKYAN AND COLLEAGUES

Science Letter
July 21, 2009

According to a study from Armenia, "The radiation fluxes inside
molecular clouds owing to a neighboring class A star or to isotropic
interstellar irradiation are calculated."

"Radiation within the interval 912 angstrom < lambda < 2067 angstrom is
found to penetrate deeply enough to ensure a radiation dose for water
ice on the order of 100 eV/amu or more over the lifetime of the clouds,
whether a star formation region is present or not. The possibility is
discussed of using these results for an astrophysical interpretation
of published data from laboratory experiments on irradiation of ices
of the type H2O:CH3OH:NH3:CO," wrote A.G. Yeghikyan and colleagues
(see also Astrophysics).

The researchers concluded: "The resulting radiation-chemical
transformation of complex organic materials may play an important
role in the prebiological evolution of the dust component of molecular
clouds."

Yeghikyan and colleagues published their study in Astrophysics
(Irradiation of dust in molecular clouds. I. UV doses. Astrophysics,
2009;52(2):288-299).

For more information, contact A.G. Yeghikyan, VA Ambartsumyan Byurakan
Astrophysics Observ, Byurakan, Armenia.

Publisher contact information for the journal Astrophysics is:
Springer, Plenum Publishers, 233 Spring St., New York, NY 10013, USA.
From: Baghdasarian