Astronomical First: JWST Has Discovered Carbon Ices in the Far Reaches of the Solar System

A research team led by UCF discovered a significant presence of ancient carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide ices on trans-Neptunian objects, indicating that carbon dioxide may have been present during the formation of our solar system.

For the first time, ices of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide have been detected on trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) in the outermost regions of our solar system.

A research team, led by planetary scientists Mário Nascimento De Prá and Noemí Pinilla-Alonso from the University of Central Florida’s Florida Space Institute (FSI), made the findings by using the infrared spectral capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to analyze the chemical composition of 59 trans-Neptunian objects and Centaurs.