ROSINA ion zoo at Comet 67P
A. Beth, K. Altwegg, H. Balsiger, J.-J. Berthelier, M. R., Combi, J. De Keyser, B. Fiethe, S. A. Fuselier, M. Galand, T., I. Gombosi, M. Rubin, T. S\'emon

TL;DR
This study utilizes high-resolution mass spectrometry data from the Rosetta mission to accurately identify and analyze the diverse ion composition in the coma of Comet 67P, revealing new molecular ions and confirming prior predictions.
Contribution
The paper presents the first in situ high-resolution ion composition analysis of a comet's coma, identifying new molecular ions and confirming the presence of predicted ions with unprecedented accuracy.
Findings
Confirmed presence of various cometary ions such as CH$_m^+$, H$_n$O$^+$, O$^+$, Na$^+$
First detection of CO$_2^{++}$ dication in a Solar System body
High mass resolution enabled separation of ions with similar masses
Abstract
The Rosetta spacecraft escorted Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko for 2 years along its journey through the Solar System between 3.8 and 1.24~au. Thanks to the high resolution mass spectrometer on board Rosetta, the detailed ion composition within a coma has been accurately assessed in situ for the very first time. Previous cometary missions, such as , did not have the instrumental capabilities to identify the exact nature of the plasma in a coma because the mass resolution of the spectrometers onboard was too low to separate ion species with similar masses. In contrast, the Double Focusing Mass Spectrometer (DFMS), part of the Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis on board Rosetta (ROSINA), with its high mass resolution mode, outperformed all of them, revealing the diversity of cometary ions. We calibrated and analysed the set of spectra acquired by…
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