The ALMA-PILS survey: First detection of nitrous acid (HONO) in the interstellar medium

Abstract

Nitrogen oxides are thought to play a significant role as a nitrogen reservoir and to potentially participate in the formation of more complex species. Until now, only NO, N${}_2$O and HNO have been detected in the interstellar medium. We report the first interstellar detection of nitrous acid (HONO). Twelve lines were identified towards component B of the low-mass protostellar binary IRAS~16293--2422 with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, at the position where NO and N${}_2$O have previously been seen. A local thermodynamic equilibrium model was used to derive the column density ($\sim$ 9 $\times$ 10${}^{14}$ cm${}^{-2}$ in a 0.5'' beam) and excitation temperature ($\sim$ 100 K) of this molecule. HNO, NO${}_2$, NO${}^{+}$, and HNO${}_3$ were also searched for in the data, but not detected. We simulated the HONO formation using an updated version of the chemical code Nautilus and compared the results with the observations. The chemical model is able to reproduce satisfactorily the HONO, N${}_2$O, and NO${}_2$ abundances, but not the NO, HNO, and NH${}_2$OH abundances. This could be due to some thermal desorption mechanisms being destructive and therefore limiting the amount of HNO and NH${}_2$OH present in the gas phase. Other options are UV photodestruction of these species in ices or missing reactions potentially relevant at protostellar temperatures.

Accepted in A&A Letters

References in corpus (6)

• The ALMA Protostellar Interferometric Line Survey (PILS): First results from an unbiased submillimeter wavelength line survey of the Class 0 protostellar binary IRAS 16293-2422 with ALMA
• Molecular Evolution and Star Formation: From Prestellar Cores to Protostellar Cores
• Simultaneous Hydrogenation and UV-photolysis Experiments of NO in CO-rich Interstellar Ice Analogues; linking HNCO, OCN-, NH2CHO and NH2OH
• Efficient Surface Formation Route of Interstellar Hydroxylamine through NO Hydrogenation II: the multilayer regime in interstellar relevant ices
• Methyl cyanide (CH3CN) and propyne (CH3CCH) in the low mass protostar IRAS 16293-2422
• Nitrogen oxide in protostellar envelopes and shocks: the ASAI survey

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