Failed Star Shakes Up a Phosphine Cocktail ⚡ экспресс
According to models, phosphine (PH₃) should be present in the atmospheres of cool brown dwarfs and giant planets. However, past observations indicated significantly lower concentrations of this gas than predicted. Using spectroscopic observations with the JWST telescope, multiple phosphine absorption lines around 4.3 µm were detected in the atmosphere of the brown dwarf Wolf 1130C. Based on these data, the abundance of phosphine was calculated to be 0.100 ± 0.009 parts per million. This value agrees with non-equilibrium chemical-dynamical models that have previously successfully reproduced the phosphine abundance on Jupiter and Saturn, and exceeds by orders of magnitude previously published estimates for other brown dwarfs and exoplanets.
Brown dwarfs — 'failed stars' that couldn't ignite their nuclear furnace. More massive than planets but lighter than stars, they resemble giant atmospheric mixers: their interiors are hot, their upper layers relatively cool, and powerful currents shake this mixture. Using спектрального анализа (breaking light into colors) on телескопе Джеймса Уэбба, scientists detected phosphine in Wolf 1130C. This gas, known from Jupiter, turned out to be ten times more concentrated here than previously seen.
Curiously, on Earth this gas smells like decay, while the cosmic 'cocktail' mixes odorlessly. Now astronomers can use such chemical markers to more clearly distinguish экзопланеты-гиганты from brown dwarfs.
🎯 On Earth, phosphine is a companion of rotting swamps, while in space it's born in the depths and carried up by storms.