Strong CO$^+$ and N$_2^+$ Emission in Comet C/2016 R2 (Pan-STARRS)

TL;DR

This study reports the detection of strong CO$^+$ and N$_2^+$ emissions in comet C/2016 R2, revealing an unusually high N$_2$/CO ratio, which provides insights into the comet's composition and the conditions in the early solar system.

Contribution

The paper presents the first unequivocal detection of N$_2^+$ in this comet and measures an exceptionally high N$_2$/CO ratio, advancing understanding of cometary volatile compositions.

Findings

Detected strong CO$^+$ and N$_2^+$ emissions.

Measured N$_2$/CO ratio of 0.15 (corrected to 0.06 in erratum).

Identified the comet's tail as an ion tail.

Abstract

We report on imaging and spectroscopic observations of comet C/2016~R2 (Pan-STARRS) obtained with the 0.8\,m and 2.7\,m telescopes of McDonald Observatory in November and December 2017 respectively. The comet was at a heliocentric distance greater than 3\,{\sc au} during both sets of observations. The images showed a well-developed tail with properties that suggested it was an ion tail. The spectra confirmed that we were observing well-developed bands of CO$^+$ and N$_2^+$. The N$_2^+$ detection was unequivocally cometary and was one of the strongest bands of N$_2^+$ detected in a comet spectrum. We derived the ratio of these two ions and from that we were able to derive that N$_2$/CO = 0.15. This is the highest such ratio reported for a comet. Note erratum - N2/CO=0.06 not 0.15.