Organic Molecules and Volatiles in Comets

Organic molecules and volatiles (e.g. H₂O, CO, CO₂) are the major components of comets. The majority of the organic compounds found within comets were produced by ice irradiation in dense molecular clouds and in the protoplanetary disk prior to comet formation. Comets are essentially repositories of protocometary material. As a result, comets do not show the clear trends in chemical and isotopic compositions that would be expected from our understanding of their formation locations. Rather, comets record chemical evolution in the protoplanetary disk and allow us to unveil the formation history of the organics and volatiles.