Meteoric CaO and carbon smoke particles collected in the upper
                        stratosphere from an unanticipated source

Corte, Vincenzo Della; Rietmeijer, F. J. M.; Rotundi, A.; Ferrari, M.; Palumbo, P.

doi:10.3402/tellusb.v65i0.20174

Cited by 19 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…It is possible, however, that a much larger cometary bolide, containing both nanometre and micrometre-sized biological entities (viruses and bacteria), disintegrated in the upper stratosphere and recondensed into the amorphous DNA imbued structures shown in Figures 1-3. This could well be similar to the reconstitution of calcite and carbon dust from the material of an exploding meteorite described by Corte et al [14].…”

Section: Membrane Stainingsupporting

confidence: 86%

Masses Staining Positive for DNA-Isolated from the Stratosphere at a Height of 41 km

Wainwright¹,

Nc²,

Harris³

et al. 2015

Astrobiol Outreach

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Clumps of stratospheric material with individual diameters of 10-30 micrometers were isolated in a sterile manner from a height of 41 km. The masses showed no obvious morphology, but stained positive for DNA and are therefore considered to be unequivocally biological. We suggest that the masses are arriving to the stratosphere from space and not upcoming from Earth; evidence is provided to support this view.

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Section: Membrane Stainingsupporting

confidence: 86%

Masses Staining Positive for DNA-Isolated from the Stratosphere at a Height of 41 km

Wainwright¹,

Nc²,

Harris³

et al. 2015

Astrobiol Outreach

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“…4.1 Origin of the observed particle types 4.1.1 Ca-rich particles Ca-rich particles in the upper stratosphere were recently described by Della Corte et al (2013). These authors specify Ca-C-F particles, calcite / aragonite particles and a porous aggregate of Ca(O) nanograins, sampled at 38 km height.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical analysis of refractory stratospheric aerosol particles collected within the arctic vortex and inside polar stratospheric clouds

et al. 2016

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Abstract. Stratospheric aerosol particles with diameters larger than about 10 nm were collected within the arctic vortex during two polar flight campaigns: RECONCILE in winter 2010 and ESSenCe in winter 2011. Impactors were installed on board the aircraft M-55 Geophysica, which was operated from Kiruna, Sweden. Flights were performed at a height of up to 21 km and some of the particle samples were taken within distinct polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs). The chemical composition, size and morphology of refractory particles were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis. During ESSenCe no refractory particles with diameters above 500 nm were sampled. In total 116 small silicate, Fe-rich, Pb-rich and aluminum oxide spheres were found. In contrast to ESSenCe in early winter, during the late-winter RECONCILE mission the air masses were subsiding inside the Arctic winter vortex from the upper stratosphere and mesosphere, thus initializing a transport of refractory aerosol particles into the lower stratosphere. During RECONCILE, 759 refractory particles with diameters above 500 nm were found consisting of silicates, silicate / carbon mixtures, Fe-rich particles, Ca-rich particles and complex metal mixtures. In the size range below 500 nm the presence of soot was also proven. While the data base is still sparse, the general tendency of a lower abundance of refractory particles during PSC events compared to non-PSC situations was observed. The detection of large refractory particles in the stratosphere, as well as the experimental finding that these particles were not observed in the particle samples (upper size limit ∼ 5 µm) taken during PSC events, strengthens the hypothesis that such particles are present in the lower polar stratosphere in late winter and have provided a surface for heterogeneous nucleation during PSC formation.

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“…There are, however, several previous publications which describe the presence of a variety of other refractory particle groups in addition to carbonaceous particles. These additional particle groups include metallic particles (Chuan and Woods, 1984;Sheridan et al, 1994;Chen et al, 1998;Baumgardner et al, 2004;Ebert et al, 2016), meteoritic particles (Murphy et al, 1998(Murphy et al, , 2007Renard et al, 2008, silicates (Testa et al, 1990;Ebert et al, 2016), crustal-type particles (Sheridan et al, 1994;Chen et al, 1998), and Ca-bearing particles (Della Corte et al, 2013;Ebert et al, 2016).…”

Section: Occurrence Of Refractory Carbonaceous Particles In the Stratmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Carbonaceous aerosol was found to contribute to the aerosol population at all latitudes in the stratosphere and interplanetary dust was significantly abundant above 30 km for particles ≥ 0.35 µm (Renard et al, 2008). Della Corte et al (2013) found calcium-oxygen (CaO)-rich particles probably originating from a bolide that penetrated the Earth's atmosphere. Single-particle mass spectrometry (SPMS) brought new insights into the chemistry of stratospheric particles (e.g., Murphy et al, 1998Murphy et al, , 2007Murphy et al, , 2013.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sub-micrometer refractory carbonaceous particles in the polar stratosphere

et al. 2017

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Abstract. Eleven particle samples collected in the polar stratosphere during SOLVE (SAGE III Ozone loss and validation experiment) from January until March 2000 were characterized in detail by high-resolution transmission and scanning electron microscopy (TEM/SEM) combined with energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis. A total of 4202 particles (TEM = 3872; SEM = 330) were analyzed from these samples, which were collected mostly inside the polar vortex in the altitude range between 17.3 and 19.9 km. Particles that were volatile in the microscope beams contained ammonium sulfates and hydrogen sulfates and dominated the samples. Some particles with diameters ranging from 20 to 830 nm were refractory in the electron beams. Carbonaceous particles containing additional elements to C and O comprised from 72 to 100 % of the refractory particles. The rest were internal mixtures of these materials with sulfates. The median number mixing ratio of the refractory particles, expressed in units of particles per milligram of air, was 1.1 (mg air) −1 and varied between 0.65 and 2.3 (mg air) −1 .Most of the refractory carbonaceous particles are completely amorphous, a few of the particles are partly ordered with a graphene sheet separation distance of 0.37 ± 0.06 nm (mean value ± standard deviation). Carbon and oxygen are the only detected major elements with an atomic O/C ratio of 0.11 ± 0.07. Minor elements observed include Si, S, Fe, Cr and Ni with the following atomic ratios relative to C: Si/C: 0.010 ± 0.011; S/C: 0.0007 ± 0.0015; Fe/C: 0.0052 ± 0.0074; Cr/C: 0.0012 ± 0.0017; Ni/C: 0.0006 ± 0.0011 (all mean values ± standard deviation).High-resolution element distribution images reveal that the minor elements are distributed within the carbonaceous matrix; i.e., heterogeneous inclusions are not observed. No difference in size, nanostructure and elemental composition was found between particles collected inside and outside the polar vortex.Based on chemistry and nanostructure, aircraft exhaust, volcanic emissions and biomass burning can certainly be excluded as sources. The same is true for the less probable but globally important sources: wood burning, coal burning, diesel engines and ship emissions.Recondensed organic matter and extraterrestrial particles, potentially originating from ablation and fragmentation, remain as possible sources of the refractory carbonaceous particles studied. However, additional work is required in order to identify the sources unequivocally.

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Meteoric CaO and carbon smoke particles collected in the upper stratosphere from an unanticipated source

Cited by 19 publications

References 68 publications

Masses Staining Positive for DNA-Isolated from the Stratosphere at a Height of 41 km

Masses Staining Positive for DNA-Isolated from the Stratosphere at a Height of 41 km

Chemical analysis of refractory stratospheric aerosol particles collected within the arctic vortex and inside polar stratospheric clouds

Sub-micrometer refractory carbonaceous particles in the polar stratosphere

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