Organic Compounds in Meteorites, Asteroids, and Comets: Building Blocks of Planets and Life

Dr. Hikaru Yabuta, Osaka University

Monday, October 6, at 4 PM 

Thorvaldson Building Room 124

Abstract:
4.5 billion years ago, our planets were formed by accretion of gas and dusts in interstellar cloud. Primitive small bodies such as comets, asteroids, and meteorites are the remnants of planetesimals which did not grow large enough to become planets. Organic compounds in primitive small bodies are important building blocks of life, as well as they consist the elements (CHON) in high abundance in the solar system. Therefore,investigations of organic compounds in these small bodies enables our understanding of chemical evolution of the solar system. In my talk, I would like to focus on the importance of analytical chemistry for studying the extraterrestrial organics, through the review of meteorite studies and the introduction of future asteroid sample return mission.

About the Presenter: Hikaru Yabuta, Assistant Professor, Department of Earth and Space Science, Osaka University Japan will be visiting University of Saskatchewan as part of the Royal Society of Canada's Canada-Japan Women in Science, Engineering and Technology (WISET) Exchange Programme.

When: Monday, October 6, at 4 PM in Thorvaldson Building Room 124