For the first time, scientists have found evidence that water molecules exist on the sun, researchers reported Thursday.
Although astronomers have found water on other stars, records of infrared emissions from sunspots show the first evidence of water on the sun, said Peter Bernath from the department of chemistry at the University of Waterloo in Ontario.Bernath's research team and scientists led by Lloyd Wallace at the National Optical Astronomy Observatories in Arizona published their findings in this week's edition of the journal Science.
Much of the sun is too hot - about 10,400 degrees F (5,800 degrees C) - for water molecules to survive. "The heat shreds water into its component elements," said Bernath.
Sunspots, however, are cooler, a mere 5,400 degrees F (3,000 degrees C). They appear as dark spots on the sun because local magnetic fields block energy output.
The water project began, Bernath said, when Wallace found two odd-looking records of infrared emissions from sunspots in the observatory's archives.
Molecules produce characteristic, individual patterns that scientists use to identify the type of molecule. Most recordings show regular patterns, but the two sunspot records were a "random, horrible, junky mess," said Bernath. "Finally we said the only thing that bad is water."
Although water molecules are common and relatively light, "it's a notorious molecule - very messy," said Bernath. But researchers wanted to confirm their suspicions by comparing the sunspot patterns with patterns generated by water on Earth.
The hard part of the project turned out to be Earth-bound water. No one had recorded infrared aspects of hot water that the scientists could use for comparison.
His team struggled to make their own infrared recording of very hot water, which proved difficult, because water was so reactive at those temperatures "it just turned into other things."
When the team finally recorded water's infrared patterns at 2,800 degrees F (1,500 degrees C), the data showed the same "mess" that Wallace had found in the sunspot recordings, thus confirming water on the sun.