JI. A.

HlIKOJIaeB M3AaTeJlLCTBO
XlfMIIH KOCMOCA «11 pOCBe~eHHe»
MOCKB8
 Space
Chemistry
L. NIKOLAEV

Translated from the Russian by

Y. NADLER

l\1ir Publishers
Moscow
 The Greek Alphabet
Aa Alpha I .. Iota Pp Rho
B~ Beta Kx Kappa ~(J' Sigma
ry Gamma AA Lambda T't Tau
f16 Delta MJ.t Mu r" Upsilon
EB Epsilon Nv Nu (1)cp Phi
Z~ Zeta 8~ Xi Xx Chi
Hl1 Eta 00 Omicron '1''1' Psi
8,e) Theta TIn Pi Qoo Omega

First published 1976 © English translation,

Revised from the 1974 Mir Publishers, 1976
Russian edition
 CONTENTS

From the Author 7

Chapter I. Research Methods Used in Space Chemistry 12
1. Light Rays and Chemical Composition 12
2. "Optical Specifications" of an Atom 16
3. Cosmic Matter on the Earth 24
4. Analytical Procedures and Techniques 29
Chapter II. Chemical Composition of Celestial Bodies.
The Solar System 37
1. Meteorites . . 37
2. Chemistry of the Solar System 53
3. The Sun and Planets of the Solar System 56
4. The Planets 65
Chapter III. Scope of Earth and Space Chemistry 94
1. G e n e r a l . . . 94
2. What Happens to Matter at High Pressure 97
3. What Happens to Matter at High Temperatures 100
4. Plasma State of Matter 103
Chapter IV. The World of Stars 107
1. Brightness and Luminosity of Stars . . . . . 107
2. The Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) Diagram and Stel-
lar Evolution ..... 108
3. Chemical Composition of Stars 112
4. Stellar Atmospheres. Light and Gravitation 120
5. Novae . 123
6. Supernovae 126
7. Comets • . . 127

5
Chapter V. Nuclear Reactions and Sources of Stellar
Energy 129
1. Constituents of the Atomic Nucleus . 129
2. Properties of Some Elementary Particles 132
3. Nuclear Reactions 135
4. Nuclear Energy Sources 136
5. Types of Nuclear Reactions 140
6. Sources of Solar Energy 145
Chapter VI. Evolution of Stars and Synthesis of Elements 151
1. Stages in the Life History of Stars . . . . . . 15'1
2. The Most Important Nuclear Reactions in Stars 162
3. Interstellar Matter . . . . . . . • 166
4. Possibility of Formation of Organic Compounds
Due to Action of Protons in Solar and Cosmic
Radiation . . . 168
5. Chemistry and Cosmology 169
Chapter VII. Prtmary Synthesis of Organic Compounds 174
1. Physical Factors wh ich Affect Synthesis 174
2. Action of Light on Matter 176
3. Relative R ole of Various Energy Sources in
Synthesis of Primary Organic Compounds . 181
4. Principal Types of Chemical Processes in Space 190
Index 193
 FROM THE AUTHOR

Space chemistry Is a science of the near future.

Rapid progress in the field of chemical research of the
planets, stars and nebulae has resulted from the develop-
ment and application of such sophisticated chemical
and physical research techniques as ultraviolet, infrared
and radio spectroscopy, as well as the study of X-ray
radiation and the magnetic fields of distant celestial
bodies.
At the present time much of the data obtained
has. been verified. The manned space flights and the
flights of .automatic interplanetary stations have ope-
ned the way for the direct analysis of the chemical
composition of the planets and the study of the inters-
tellar medium under conditions that have heretofore
been impossible. The number of hypotheses and assump-
tions still remaining in space chemistry is constantly
decreasing, while the general picture of element synthe-
sis in the interior of stars and the close connection bet-
ween the evolution of stars and the chemical processes
that occur in them are becoming more clearly defined.
The practical application of space chemistry is
of no mean significance: the precise knowledge of the
conditions of future space flights, the study of the
effect of solar activity on the state of the Earth's atmo-
sphere and the health of its inhabitants-all this
7
demands an understanding of the chemical processes
occurring in outer space.
Near-Earth outer space is gradually being occupied
by satellites orbiting our planet. Each year their num-
ber is considerably growing and the problems solved

Fig. 1. First Soviet sputnik

with their aid are becoming more complex and varied.

Long-range weather forecasts are now made on data
provided by meteorological satellites. Highly valuable
astronomical information can be obtained by flying
observatories. I t should be borne in mind that the
principal obstacle in the development of Earth astro-
nomy is all kinds of disturbances created by the atmo-
sphere which is in constant motion, always agitated,
often misty and cloudy. K. E. Tsiolkovsky dreamt of
small "ethereal communities", prototypes of modern
8
and future space orbital stations. Such stations will
be equipped with scientific laboratories, intermediate
cosmodromes, perhaps they will carry power plants
and even whole factories giving off their wastes far
out into space, thus protecting the Earth's atmosphere
and surface from pollution.
The creation of high-capacity power plants and
factories far from the Earth may seem at first sight
to be inexpedient. Why should factories and plants be
built so far from the consumers and why should such
transport expenditures be incurred? This is, however,
no laughing matter as it may appear at a superficial
glance. As a matter of fact industrial development on
our planet has already reached such dimensions that it
is necessary to take into consideration not only wastes
but the influence of industry on the world's thermal and
chemical conditions. The concentration of carbon
dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere is continuously grow-
ing and if no measures are taken, in one or two centu-
ries it will become dangerous-our globe will resemble
a room filled with cigarette smoke that is in bad need
of thorough ventilation. Moreover, the continuous libe-
ration of heat as a resul t of the activi ty of millions of
plants has already noticeably heightened the mean
temperature on the Earth. The amount of energy evol-
ved is so great that very soon (probably in a hundred
years) mankind will be receiving as much energy in
this way as it does from the Sun. Overheating is inevit-
able and the consequences may be undesirable. That
is why the organization of industry in outer space is
quite rational and, judging from available data, quite
feasible. This is no longer fantasy, but rather a diffi-
cult scientific and technological problem that can,
however, be solved.
The conquest of near-Earth space and, all the more
so, far-distant space flights demand knowledge of com-
9
plex chemical and physical factors. As yet science is
only embarking on this new path and cannot, by far.,
foresee all that may be met on it; but the chemical "sur-
prises" encountered will undoubtedly be diverse and
complex.
The analysis of soil samples delivered from the
1\100n by Soviet interplanetary stations showed that
lunar rocks contain iron that is practically resistant
to oxidation. To the chemist this is an unexpected sur-
prise which requires special study.
The astronauts of the Apollo expedition on landing
on the Moon discovered that the metal of the spacecraft
Surveyor that had descended earlier on the Moon had
become brittle and crumbled easily due to the action
of cosmic radiation on it. Outer space is full of a great
number of riddles and the more man knows about the
chemistry and physics of the planets, stars and interstel-
lar spaces, the easier it will be for future generations
to solve them.
Earth science, of course, has grounds to be proud
of its achievements and its knowledge of outer space,
but in the course of analysing the state- and properties
of celestial bodies it hag become clear that there are
somethings that have to be perfected and supplemented
and other things that can be verified on such a scale
that is simply impossible on the Earth. New possib-
ilities have even come to mathematics: it has now
become possible to answer the question whether the
geometry of Euclid or that of Lobachevsky-Riemann
should be applied in studying outer space; the funda-
mental theories of physics (e. g., Einstein's theory of
relativity) are heing tested in space "proving grounds";
new branches of knowledge (e.g., astrophysics) have
sprung up; studies are being made of the laws govern-
ing plasma processes at temperatures of millions and
billions of- degrees, etc, 'This means that outer space,
10
on becoming the object of research, has influenced the
development of all the branches of natural science.
A characteristic feature of the theory of the evolu-
tion of interstellar matter, stars and other cosmic pro-
cesses is that it is based on the acknowledgement of
the deep and inseparable connection between the
physical and chemical aspects of these processes. Often
the reason for the change in the physical state of a star
cannot be understood without investigating the che-
mical side of the change. On the other hand, the possib-
ility of chemical, and, especially, nuclear-chemical
reactions occurring, in a great many cases is determin-
ed by physical factors: temperature, gravitational
force, magnetic fields, etc. For this reason when study-
ing outer space, chemistry cannot be separated from
physics; it would be more correct to speak of space
physical chemistry (or chemical physics) than of chem-
istry in the strict sense of the term. We must constantly
turn our attention to the physical conditions under
which the reactions proceed although the purely
chemical data in this field is very interesting and diverse.
In this small book an attempt has been made to
set forth the distinguishing features of the chemical
phenomena characteristic of outer space. We have
alloted special attention to the theoretical and expe-
rimental methods of investigation of space, avoiding
however, repetition of the material contained in school
courses of physics and chemistry. At the same time,
striving to make the book as popular as possible, we
confined ourselves only to the most essential informa-
tion concerning the nature of the atomic nucleus, the
laws of nuclear energetics, the origin of various kinds
of spectra, etc. The scope of the knowledge of physics,
chemistry and mathematics given at our secondary
schools is quite sufficient for understanding this book.
 CHAPTER I

Research Methods Used

in Space Chemistry

1. LIGHT RAYS AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION

At the very first acquaintance with chemistry and

chemical analysis it becomes clear that in order to
ascertain the composition of a substance it is neces-
sary, first of all, to have the appropriate quantity
of the substance. The chemist treats the material
under test with certain reagents and observes the
changes that occur (the appearance of precipitates,
colour, gases, etc.). Not so long ago, the study of meteo-
rites was the only means of investigating cosmic matter
by chemical analysis.
Now when the Earth's nearest neighbour, the MOOD,
has been explored by the Soviet Luna automatic inter-
planetary stations, Lunokhod and the American
Apollo expeditions, and samples of lunar rocks have
been delivered to the Earth, direct chemical analysis
of celestial bodies is a matter that can be spoken of
with certainty. This, naturally, is the most reliable
source of information.
The investigations of planets with the aid of auto-
matic interplanetary stations are undoubtedly of great
importance. Soviet stations that landed on Venus and
Mars have communicated from there important data
on the composition of the atmosphere of these planets.
The American interplanetary station Pioneer-Il took
pictures of the surface of Jupiter at a distance of
12
42,000 km. However, it should be borne in mind that
the nearest star (Alpha Centauri) is 4.2 light-years
from us, i.e., light travelling from it at a speed of
300,000 km per second reaches us in 4.2 years! Of
course, there are no grounds to expect that such far-
distant space flights will be made very soon. But the
means, by which the automatic stations flying to the
Moon or Venus transmit the necessary data to the
Earth and by which they receive commands from the
Earth, is also used by the stars, including the Sun,
to tell us about themselves. The means referred to is
light rays; the study of light rays is called spectral
analysis.
The Sun's rays bringing light and life to the Earth
can provide data on the chemical composition of stars
and their physical state: temperature, motion of hot
particles and energy of nuclear reactions. However,
all this can be found out only if you can read the elusive,
seemingly weightless and non-material light ray.
In ancient times people prayed at dawn, greeting
sunlight; but thousands of years passed before the
language of sun rays was understood. The rainbow was
not only admired for the beautiful spectacle it presen-
ted but it made men wonder why instead of "white"
light there suddenly appeared a series of bright colou-
red bands. Already in the XIII century, correct sur-
mises as to the nature of the rainbow were made.
Grossetst and Vitelo Silezski related this phenomenon
to the diffraction of light in drops of rain water,
and in 1666 the great Newton, with the aid of a glass
prism, dispersed sunlight into its constituent coloured
rays. Scientists began to study the spectrum thus
obtained. The glowing surface of the Sun sends to the
Earth rays of all colours which on blending produce
white light. I. Fraunhofer and G. Kirchhoff established
the presence of dark lines in the continuous spectrum
13
of the Sun. They explained these dark hands correctly.
The Sun's atmosphere contains definite elements
(sodium, iron, calcium and other elements) and their
atoms absorb from the light radiated by the Sun part
of the rays, namely those which are characteristic of

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819/f8
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B06.08 615.42
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5JD.JO JJO.2J

Fig. 2.
Left: 1 - formation of spectrum; the prism deflects rays with short wave-
lengths to a greater degree and therefore the beam of light is dispersed
on passing through the prism; 2 - emission spectrum of sodium (wave-
length in nanometres). Right: 3 - light is radiated by the atom on tran-
sition of an electron from a distant orbit to a nearer one; 4 - I1ght is
absorbed by the atom and the electron passes to the excited state

their own radiation (Fig. 2, 1 and 2). Consequently,

what elements are found on the Sun can be determined
by the arrangement of the dark lines. Thus, the first
steps were taken in the interpretation of the language
of light. Yet the philosopher A. Kont asserted that
man would never know what the stars were composed
of; that was about 140 years ago. In a short period
of time the science of space chemistry has gone a very
long way.
14
 In many cases the characteristic lines of the emis-
sion spectra of various cosmic objects (such as nebulae
and 'stars) can be observed and from their position
the chemical nature of the particles that sent the rays
into space can be inferred correctly.
Celestial bodies, as is well known, often have
a high temperature and for this reason are very suitable
objects for spectral analysis. If the temperature is low,
it is more difficult to conduct chemical analysis, but
in this case it is not altogether hopeless. The beam
of light directed onto the surface of any body is par-
tially absorbed and partially reflected. The spectral
composition of the reflected ray differs from that of
the incident ray; that is why we perceive the colour
of things: the leaves of trees seem to be green because
the chlorophyll contained in the leaves absorbs red
rays from the sunlight while the yellow-green rays are
reflected and fallon the retina of the eye of the observer
and produce the visual sensation of the green colour.
By studying the spectra of reflected rays it is possible
to infer the chemical- composition of celestial bodies
having relatively low temperatures. In this way the
first information was obtained about the composition
of lunar rocks; of the chemical nature of the surface of
"Mars!.
Spectral analysis of emitted and reflected rays
can be carried out not only in the region of visible
rays but also in the region of long waves which lie
beyond the blue end of the spectrum (in the ultraviolet
part of it) or beyond the red end (in its infrared part).
Let us familiarize ourselves with certain fundamen-
tals of chemical spectral analysis.

1 Of course, the presence of a dense atmosphere on the

planet (for example, on Venus or Jupiter) prevents the use of
spectra of reflected light for studying the surface of planets.

15
 2. "OPTICAL SPECIFICATIONS" OF AN ATOM
The atoms of substances are capable of absorbing
and radiating light. If an electron revolving about
the nucleus of an atom receives a quantity of energy,
it generally passes to an orbit of a larger radius.
M. Planck proved that the frequency of vibration 'V
of the wave of light falling on a given atom is related
to the quantity of energy e which the atom absorbed
from the light as follows:
8=hv
where h is Planck's constant equal to 6.62 X 10-27
erg-s.
This signifies that light behaves not only as a wave
process but as a flow of small material particles with
a quantity of energy or quantum (the word quantum
is the latin for quantity), also called a photon. The
electron that has absorbed a quantum of energy and
subsequently passed to an orbit farther from the nucleus
is now in the excited state. I t persists in this state for
a very short period of time. As a rule, it jumps back
to the orbit of the ground state in millionth parts of
a second and the absorbed quantum is radiated in the
form of an electromagnetic wave of the same length
and frequency of vibration as the original wave.
I t was established by N. Bohr, an outstanding
Danish researcher in the field of atomic physics, that
electrons in an atom can revolve without losing energy
only in certain "permitted" orbits whose radius can be
calculated.
Bohr's theory was only the first step in the field of
atomic physics. In 1924, de Broglie (France) came to
the conclusion that the combination of wave and
corpuscular properties is characteristic of all elementary
particles in the atom (electron, proton, neutron, etc.),
and experimental data and further theoretical develop-
-16
ment have confirmed de Broglie's views. The dual
nature of the behaviour of the objects of atomic physics
resulted in the impossibility of simultaneously deter-
mining the position of an electron and its momentum
with certainty.
It is possible to calculate with certainty not the
values of radii in an atom but only the probability of
finding the electron at a given distance from the nucleus
of the atom. Each orbit! corresponds to a specific energy
level in the atom. The' transition of electrons between
the orbits, i.e., transition from one energy level to
another, is accompanied by the radiation or absorption
of energy. Energy is radiated or absorbed as light
waves, and consequently, each atom can be characteri-
zed by the series of light waves, which corresponds to
the transition of electrons between the energy levels
in a given atom (Fig. 2, 3 and 4).
The term light wave applies not only to visible
light but to electromagnetic waves in general, includ-
ing ultraviolet and infrared waves. The length of an
electromagnetic wave denoted as A, the frequency of
vibration v and the velocity of wave propagation c
are related as follows:
c="tw
The velocity of propagation of an electromagnetic
wave in vacuum is enormous; it is equal to 3 X 1010 em/s
or 300,000 km/s.
The simplest atom, the hydrogen atom, has only
one electron. On absorbing energy in any form the
electron can rise to one of the higher energy levels;
the atom passes over to the excited state. Then follows
1 Since the concept orbit from the point of view of wav.e
mechanics no longer makes any sense, the term orbital is often
used; it denotes a function with the aid of which the energy
level of electrons is calculated.
2-01266 17
 the reverse transition and the atom becomes the source
of radiation. The atom radiates a specific wave depend-
ing on the level to which the electron passes. If from
the higher level the electron returns to the ground orbit
at once, there will be given off a quantum of relatively
high energy and hence, according to Planck's formula,
of a high frequency, Le., a short wavelength. The waves
produce in the spectrum a series of lines located in the
ultraviolet region. They cannot be seen with the naked
eye but can be observed and photographed by special
instruments (quartz spectrophotometers and spectro-
graphs). If an electron, as is often the case, does not
return to the ground state at once but passes from
various distant orbits to the second one from the nuc-
leus, waves are emitted with wavelengths correspond-
ing to the visible region of the spectrum. When transi-
tions of electrons take place from any far orbit to the
third one from the nucleus, a group of waves is emitted
that have wavelengths corresponding to infrared waves.
They can be detected by the heating up of the junction
of a thermocouple placed opposite the light waves or
with the aid of specially treated plates sensitive to
infrared waves.
The spectral lines obtained under different condi-
tions of excitement of an atom completely characterize
the atom, i.e., constitute its "optical specifications"
If the wavelengths characteristic of a given atom under
Earth conditions are known, it is possible to conjecture
whether one or another element is present in a star
from its spectrum, though mistakes are sometimes
possible. The conditions on the stars are so extraord-
inary for Earth laboratories that there were instances
when the spectral lines found on studying star radia-
tions were attributed to new elements although they
were, in reality, lines emitted by known substances
under conditions that could not be simulated on the
13
Earth. At the present time, however, the probability
of such mistakes is small, and spectral analysis is one
of the mightiest means of investigating the chemical
composition of celestial bodies.
In addition to information about the chemical com-
position of distant stars, spectral analysis can also
give an idea of the temperature of stars. Very high
temperatures correspond to the formation of plasma.
In such a state the atoms are free of outer electrons, and
the spectrum shows only lines of hydrogen and ionized
helium. At lower temperatures atoms of heavier ele-
ments are formed and then compounds of the type of
stable oxides. Thus, the temperature of the source of
radiation can be inferred from the general character
of the spectrum.
There' exists a dependence between the temperature
of a heated body and the wavelength on which most of
the energy is radiated. Hence, the temperature of
a source emitting a continuous spectrum can be sur-
mised by studying the energy distribution in accor-
dance with the wavelengths of the radiated light. It
was precisely the investigation of the spectrum that
enabled scientists to correct the mistake made when
the temperature of the planet Jupiter was discussed.
It was supposed that Jupiter is a red-hot mass: the
bright stripes and spots on the surface of its vast
atmosphere gave rise to this supposition. However,
the analysis of the radiation of this giant planet showed
that Jupiter shines only by reflected sunlight; itsown
small radiation corresponds to a relatively low tempe-
rature of 120-170°C.
Very interesting data on the composition of atmos-
pheres was obtained by investigating absorption spectra.
If an atmosphere contains molecules of a certain com-
pound, these molecules will absorb the radiation
emanating from the surface of the given planet and
2* 19
 dark bands can be seen in the spectrum that are charac-
teristic of the molecule as a whole (not of individual
atoms). Molecules also have "optical specifications"
which are more complex and more difficult to inter-
pret than those of atoms.
1J.20 1't29 Fig. 3 shows the wavelengths
characteristic of the absorp-
tion spectrum of water.
Spectral analysis has re-
vealed the presence of car-
bon dioxide and a very small
quantity of oxygen in the
atmosphere of Venus. Now
when thanks to Soviet auto-
matic interplanetary sta-
tions we have exact data
11.04 that the atmosphere of the
"evening and morning star"
really consists mainly of
carbon dioxide, CO2 , it can
be said that spectral ana-
lysis has passed the test,
and, consequently, the in-
formation obtained by this
method pertaining to other
Fig. 3. Absorption spectrum planets and stars is quite
of water in the infrared re- trustworthy.
gion (wavelength in um) Spectral analysis is one
of the most effective means
of investigation in space chemistry. It permits disco-
vering, at great distances from measuring instruments,
the presence not only of atoms and ions but also of
more complex particles (radicals and 'molecules) pos-
sessing characteristic spectra, The analysis . of spectna
has made it possible to obtain a precise idea of the
physical state of an object, its' temperature, the con-
20
 centration of various substances in it and even of the
character of the motion of celestial bodies.
Let it he assumed that for some reason the electro-
magnetic wave of an atom is rapidly receding from us'.
How will the position of the spectral line change in
this case? Less waves will get into the objective of the
spectroscope per unit time than in the case of a station-
ary distance between the instrument and the wave
source: the wavelength seems to increase and, accord-
ingly, the frequency to decrease; the spectral line
shifts. to the red end of the spectrum, i.e., in.othe
direction of longer waves. The velocity of the radiat-
ing body can be estimated from the red shift in the
position of the lines in their spectra. This phenomenon
is called the Doppler effect. Hence, spectral analysis
can be used not only for drawing conclusions about
the" chemical composition of celestial bodies but also
about their motion.
Recent years have brought important discoveries
in radio spectroscopy, i.e., in the field which studies
electromagnetic oscillations of relatively low frequency.
It has been established that there are regions in space
that emit radio waves; some of the sources doso very
intensively. It has been found that in a number of
cases emission is of a periodic nature (pulsating stars).
The study of radio emission in space is undoubtedly
one of the most interesting and promising branches of
astrophysics. Astronomers are actively using radio
waves for examining the depths of outer space.
The investigation of reflected radio waves has
opened the way for extensive study of the planets.
The character of the reflection of radio waves is connec-
ted with the structure of a surface. Radio waves are
reflected from a smooth surface differently than from
a rough surfacev Consequently, by studying electro-
magnetic waves it is possible not only to determine
21
the composition of celestial bodies but even to visua-
lize the physical structure of its outer layers.
A reflected radio wave informs the physicist about
the magnitude of the dielectric constant of the sub-
stance from which it is reflected. The dielectric constant
shows how many times the force of attraction between
two charges is smaller in a given medium than it is
in vacuum. Thus, for example, if a force of 162 dynes
acts between two charges in vacuum, in water this
force will be 81 times smaller and will hardly reach 2
dynes. A specific dielectric constant is characteristic
of every individual substance (sand, marble, water,
benzene, ice, etc.), That is why the magnitude of
this physical constant can be used to make well-founded
assumptions concerning the composition of the surface
reflected. Thus, the value of the dielectric constant,
which is equal to 3.75, obtained for Venus speaks in
favour of the assumption that this planet has a sandy
or rocky surface.
Of especial interest was the study of waves of
a length of 21 em. Such waves are emitted by the most
widespread element in the universe, hydrogen, when
a change occurs in the state of the electron associated
with the self-rotation of this particle.
The fact is that the nucleus and electron in the
hydrogen atom are characterized by an angular momen-
tum; so that for the sake of simplicity the hydrogen
atom can be pictured as consisting of two tops,
the nucleus and electron, each of which rotates on its
own axis and about the common centre of gravity
(Fig. 4).
The quantity of energy in the atom depends on
whether the "tops" are rotating on their axes in the
same direction or in opposite directions. For this rea-
son the transition of an atom from one state to another
is accompanied by the radiation of electromagnetic
22
waves 21 em in length. The hydrogen 'atom very rarely
undergoes such a transition; millions of years can
pass before the direction of rotation changes but the
number of hydrogen atoms in space is so great that it
is possible to study the radiation of a wavelength
of 21 em. The results of investigations have provided
data from which the dcns it y of hydrogen in different

}...= '£=21cm
l.t v

Fig. 4. Two states of the hydrogen atom. Transitions between

them are accompanied by radiation or absorption of waves
having a length of 21 em

regions of space can. be inferred. Of great promise are

the investigations of short-wave radiation of the type
of X-rays: this radiation affords evidence of powerful
nuclear and electronic processes that break out in the
depth of outer space. From there scientists are conti-
nually receiving information recorded in the language
of frequency and their task, which is by no means an
easy one, is to interpret these messages. All the infor-
mation obtained on studying the data of spectral
analyses shows that in outer space there are no elements
that are unknown to man; but in celestial bodies the
elements familiar to us are often under conditions
that cannot be simulated on the Earth.
23
 3. COSMIC MATTER ON THE EARTH

The Earth, enveloped by the atmosphere, rushes

through space, and although the atmosphere apprec-
iably weakens the action of radiation, it is not impe-
netrable to some solid particles which ean be met with
on the way. Even when these solid particles are strongly
heated because of friction against air and are completely
converted to vapours, all the same the products of
their conversion sooner or later will reach the Earth.
As a matter of fact, solid bodies of all possible sizes
from the fine particles of cosmic dust to large meteori-
tes with a mass of hundreds of kilograms and even
several tons fallon the Earth.
Cosmic dust slowly settles down on the surface of
the Earth and recently, thanks to data from artificial
Earth satellites, it has become possible to determine
the daily fallout of this dust. It proved to be enormous:
daily our planet receives up to 20,000 tons of cosmic
matter. The composition of the Earth's surface cannot
differ essentially from that of the cloud of rarefied
dust through which all the celestial bodies of our
solar system have been moving for billions of years
(see below the theory of O. Yu, Shmidt). It is of
interest to know that the fallout of dust varies. In
1938, such a large cloud of dust invaded the Earth's
atmosphere that in the vast northern regions of Siberia
the intensity of daylight was markedly reduced.
The Earth not only receives matter but loses it as
well. Part of the gases and water vapour in the atmos-
phere are carried off into space. It may well be that
in a remote geological era there was more water on the
Earth and the level of the World's ocean was consider-
ably higher. Thus, the Earth and outer space are con-
stantly exchanging energy and matter, Le., together
they constitute a dynamic system.
24
 The sizes of meteorites vary over a wide range. In
its motion the Earth periodically crosses the orbit of
8 meteor swarm. Between Mars and Jupiter there are
8 great many (more than 3000) small fragments of
celestial bodies which revolve around the Sun but
sometimes deviate from their orbits and, being drawn
into the region of gravitational attraction of our planet,
fall onto it. Small fragments of a mass equal to a frac-
tion of a gram (meteoritic particles) burn up in the
atmosphere, leaving a luminous trail of "a falling star"
behind them, while larger ones (meteorites) can reach
the Earth's surface.
The appearance of meteorites was always unexpec-
ted and the light and sound effects, often very violent,
that accompanied their fall aroused fear and even panic.
Many vivid descriptions of terrible events recorded
in ancient documents and chronicles have come to our
days. In the Nikonov annals of the year 1421 it is
said of a meteorite that fell in the Great Novgorod:" ...
rain and hail and stones fell from the clouds to the
Earth... and people were hardly able to recover from
their fright".
In 1162, during a meteorite shower in the vicinity
of the Kirillo-Belozersky monastery many small stones
fell to the ground. An eye-witness wrote: " the ground
shook, mansions tottered and many people in their
terror fell to the earth. And then small and large
stones fell with great violence'".
These observations evidently pertain to stony mete-
orites. Iron meteorites are encountered more rarely,
however, they are easier to find after they have fallen.
Iron meteorites were sometimes used for making wea-
pons. Meteoritic iron supplied the inhabitants of

1 B. Vorontsov-Velyaminov. Ocherki 0 vselennoy (An Essay

on the Universe). Gosteoretizdat, Moscow, 1.951.

25
Greenland with the means for making knives and other
instruments. Meteorites were the sole source of metal
because the layer of ice and snow on the ground there
excluded any access to mineral ores. In 1621, in Lagor
(India), swords, daggers and lances were made .from
meteoritic iron, though this was very difficult because
"celestial iron" can be wrought (hammered into shape)
only in the cold state.
Strange as it may seem the very fact that meteorites
do fall was doubted by scientists for a long time and
even at the end of the XVIII century (1790) when
discussing reports on a observed meteorite, the mem-
bers of the French academy, including the famous
chemist A. Lavoisier, came to the conclusion that it
was physically impossible for stones to fall from the
sky. This paradoxical situation can partly be attribu-
ted, probably, to the fact that the remnants of small
meteorites sometimes differ in appearance so little
from terrestrial rocks that they do not attract atten-
tion. The first official report stating that two "pieces
of iron", Le., iron meteorites, fell down from the sky
dates to 1751 (according to B. Vorontsov-Velyaminov);
it is an episcopal record of an event that occurred
in Grashin (Yugoslavia); on May 26, 1751. Twenty
years later in 1772, in Siberia, Academician Pallas
discovered an iron-stony meteorite previously found
by the Cossak Medvedev in the 40s; it weighed 700 kg.
This meteorite went down in scientific history under
the name of "Pallas iron" and served as the basis for
the book by E. Chladny printed in 1794 in which the
author proved that stones can fall from the sky despite
the doubts of sceptics. An important feature of the
investigations of this scientist was the acknowledgement
of the cosmic origin of these mysterious stones. Still
earlier (in 1754) the idea of the extraterrestrial origin
of meteorites was mentioned by Stepling, the Czech
26
investigator-astronomer. In 1803,"the same conclusions
were drawn by the French Academy of Sciences but
all doubt was dispelled only after a meteorite shower
consisting of about 3000 small meteorites fell on the
city of L' Aigle.
Gradually meteorites began to attract the attention
of chemists, geologists and even travellers who found
traces of their falls in various regions of the globe
and sometimes fragments of large bodies breaking up
or exploding at the end of their travel in space. In
1897, Peary found an enormous iron meteorite (33 tons)
in the ice blocks of Greenland; in Hoba (South-West
Africa), a 60-ton giant meteorite was found containing
iron and nickel (16 per cent); in 1937, near Minsk
a meteorite was found with a mass of 188 kg; in Mexico,
there is a meteorite weighing more than 24 tons, left
on the spot where it fell, etc.
One of the meteorites excavated in Quaternary
deposits in Argentina at a depth of 6 metres was,
apparently, the cause of the death of a megatherium
whose bones were found at the very spot where the
meteorite fell. Some celestial wanderers - stones fal-
ling on the Earth's surface - had colossal dimensions.
Traces of a visit of one of these meteorites that struck
the ground can be found in Arizona where on the sur-
face of the lime-sandy plateau there is a large crater,
the Canyon Diablo, having the shape of a funnel
1.2 km in diameter. The depth of the crater is 180
metres; it is surrounded by a wall 45 metres high.
The violence of the explosion can be inferred from
the fact that a slab of stone almost half a kilometre
long was stood up vertically by the explosion and
a number of fragments of cliff rock of a mass up to
700 tons was scattered at a distance of 10 km. It is
believed that the meteorite probably went deeply
into the ground, but repeated attempts to reach it
27
were unsuccessful, although at a depth of 300 metres
the borers were broken on striking some hard material.
It is supposed that the Arizona meteorite fell onto the
Earth 5000 years ago.
In 1908, a meteorite of gigantic size fell and explo-
ded in the region of Podkamennaya Tunguska. Flying
above the Earth in the North-Eastern direction it radia-
ted such a bright light that it outshone the Sun. Appro-
aching the Earth's surface at a rate of tens of kilometres
per second it exploded in the taiga (vast Siberian con-
iferous forest) and formed numerous craters in the zone
of explosion. The sound produced by the explosion was
heard at a distance of 700 km. At a distance of 60 km
from the spot where the explosion occurred the effect
of the blast was devastating. The woodland in that
region was burnt down and felled in an area with a
diameter of about 25 km. The explosion wave went
round the globe twice and was registered in Germany
and the United States. The meteorite, apparently, was
broken up into very small fragments and its main
mass vapourized at the moment of explosion; no frag-
ments have ever been found.
In 1947, in the vicinity of Sikhote-Alin an enor-
mous meteorite fell to the Earth leaving a bright
luminous trail behind it, which could be seen at
a distance of 300 km. The expeditions that worked at
the site of the explosion (F. Shipulin, V. Fesenkov,
E. Krinov and others) found 106 craters and thousands
of fragments. The total mass of the meteorite shower
(according to B. Vorontsov-Velyaminov) was appro-
ximately 100 tons.
In our times all meteorites are carefully examined
and registered, and the science of meteorites (known
as meteoritics) is a wide and well developed branch
of astrophysics.

28
 The chemical analysis of meteorites is simple enough
when compounds whose content in celestial bodies is
relatively large are concerned; the analysis of substance
whose concentration is very small is much more dif-
ficult.

4. ANALYTICAL PROCEDURES AND TECHNIQUES

Qualitative and quantitative chemical analysis is

carried out by different methods depending on the
quantity of the substance at hand, its nature and
also the accuracy required. Although for many com-
mercial products the quantitative determination of
impurities to the nearest 10-3 per cent is often quite
adequate, in other cases the materials used in modern
technology demand an accuracy of 10-8 per cent and
even 10-8 per cent. When investigating meteoritic
substances the accuracy must be even greater. Some-
times theoretical deductions of enormous importance
for the progress of space science depend on the correct
estimation of the content of a certain compound.
Therefore the chemical methods of meteoritic analy-
sis are supplemented by physico-chemical methods of
analysis. If the analyst is provided with a piece of
stony meteorite of sufficient size, he should begin
with chemical analysis. It can be assumed at the very
start, for example, that the meteorite contains silicon
dioxide (Si0 2 ) . But prior to proceeding with quantita-
tive analysis, preliminary qualitative tests should be
made to obtain an idea of the nature of the substance
under test. In order to determine the content of silicic
acid, a weighed portion of the material is treated with
perchloric acid solution (HCI0 4 ) , then boiled to dis-
solve the metal compounds and the precipitated acid
is filtered, washed, dried and weighed.
29
 To check the accuracy of the determination, the
silicic acid precipitate is treated with hydrofluoric
acid whereupon the silicon is converted to silicon
tetrafluoride; on heating, the tetrafluoride vapourizes
and the original content of silicic acid can be found
from the loss in mass. This is a typical procedure in
analytical chemistry, tested on hundreds of thousands
if not millions of specimens, which gives unerring
results.
But the analyst may be faced by another problem.
It is supposed that the meteorite contains a complex
mixture of organic compounds. The amount of organic
matter is very small and the nature of the components
and even their number are unknown. Should purely
chemical methods be used in this case? I t would be
taking a chance of losing precious material because
we do not know how the components will behave in
the process of chemical treatment, heating, drying,
etc.
The analyst will try to dissolve the material in an
organic solvent or mixture of solvents and will then
try physico-chemical methods of analysis. He will
probably apply chromatographic or spectral analysis.
Chromatography is indeed a marvelous discovery. For
hundreds of years people observed how a solution
of a mixture of dyes spreads over porous materials,
fabrics, paper and how there appear coloured rings
and stripes indicating the separation of the dyes.
To observe this phenomenon, it is enough to mix inks
of different colours and then to apply a drop of the
resulting solution on filter paper, even on a blotter:
the individual dyes are separated and instead of a mono-
chromatic spot we'll obtain concentric rings of diffe-
rent colours. It did not occur to anybody that here
was the key to the solution of very complex problems
of analytical chemistry. It required the genius of

30
.;;41'
M. Tsvet to understand the practical application of
this natural separation of a mixture due to the diverse
absorbability of organic compounds in a layer of
porous material.
A complex mixture of substances, for example,
of amino acids dissolved in water is absorbed on
a sheet of paper immersed vertically in the solution.
Different amino acids rise at different rates, and if
the process is discontinued, each acid will reach a dif-
ferent place on the paper. The zones where the acids
are concentrated can be expanded out by saturating
the sheet of paper with an appropriate solvent and,
finally, these zones can be clearly seen if the paper is
treated with the organic compound ninhydrin in which
all amino acids give compounds that are red-violet
in colour.
Now to perform quantitative analysis, the parts
of the sheet of paper where individual amino acids
have accumulated are cut out, the coloured substance
is extracted by a solvent and its content determined.
preferably with the aid of a spectrograph. This consti-
tutes the whole analysis. The example of the analysis
of a mixture of amino acids is given because such
mixtures are the most difficult to analyze by purely
chemical methods. The major part of the great progress
achieved in our days in the field of the chemistry of
proteins and natural complex compounds, the chemistry
of transuranium elements, etc. is based on chromato-
graphic analysis. There are various techniques of
chromatographic separation. Not only paper is used
as the absorbent, but also different carbonates, oxides,
starch, etc.
Gas chromatography is used for analyzing volatile
substances (gases and vapours). The mixture of gases
is passed through a column (a long tube) containing
an adsorbent (for example, coal). The layers of adsor-
31
bent are gradually saturated. At a certain moment at
the other end of the column one of the mixture com-
ponents begins to emerge, the component which is
less readily adsorbed and that is followed by a com-
ponent that is more readily adsorbed, etc.; the mix-
ture is thus separated. The first ("front") layer of the
C11
c1J'

'1
to)

~
~
-s
~

'to J5 30 25 20 15 10 5 Minutes

Fig. 5. Typical gas chromatogram: the separation of a mixture

of hydrocarbons. Axis of abscissas - time in minutes; axis of
ordinates-detector signals indicating the amount of effluent
component; Cl7t CIS' ell-the number of carbon atoms in the
hydrocarbon molecule

adsorbent can be saturated with the mixture of volatile

substances and then the adsorbed components are
expelled with the aid of a continuous stream of inert
carrier gas. The separation of the components takes
place within the layer of adsorbent where adsorption
zones of all the components are formed. The components
of the mixture emerge from the exit of the column one
after another (this method is known as gas chromato-
graphy by selective adsorption). The apparatus for
such analyses are chromatographs which operate auto-
matically and with a high degree of accuracy (Fig. 5).
32
 Chromatography made possible the~ analysis of the
.eomposition of very rare meteorites of unexplained
origin-of carbonaceous chondrites which will be con-
sidered below.
Above we have already mentioned the spectrograph,
.an instrument which can be used very effectively for
_direct analysis of substances. Let us examine its mode
of operation in greater detail. Spectrographs are used
-to study absorption spectra. The point is that in order
.to obtain emission spectra it is necessary to heat the
substance under test strongly and many complex mole-
cules do not withstand heating. A ray of light on pas-
sing through a substance in the pure state or in solu-
tion is partially or completely absorbed by it. The
reason for this is that the energy of the light waves is
spent to change the motion of the constituent parts
of the molecule. Waves of long wavelengths from
beyond the red end of the spectrum (infrared radia-
tion) are absorbed by certain groups of atoms, for
example, OH, NH 2 , CH, CO, etc.: each group absorbs
tkdiation of different wavelengths within a narrow
'range. The absorbed energy is expended to raise the
energy level of the atomic nuclei vibrating at a defi-
nite frequency. Visible light and ultraviolet radiation
carrying large quantities (quanta) of energy transfer
the electrons of the molecules to higher levels. Visible
and ultraviolet rays can be recorded by various means;
in particular, with the aid of photographic plates on
which these waves act strongly.
;~ It is convenient to register infrared rays with the
help of a thermocouple or bolometer. A thermocouple
ia a combination of two dissimilar metals in the [unc-
tion of which a current is generated that is proportional
to the amount of energy absorbed. A bolometer
consists of a fine blackened platinum wire the resis-
tance of which changes with heat. The infrared rays
3-01268 33
heat the wire and the intensity of a wave in the infra-
red part of the spectrum is inferred from the change
in the resistance of the wire.
A beam of light containing various waves is absor-
bed in a complex molecule by electrons and whole
.groups of atoms. In accordance with the decrease in the
intensity of radiation of one or another wavelength
after it has passed through the substance it is possible
to determine of what atoms the molecules of the sub-
stance are composed and how they are distributed.
Sometimes the result obtained can be checked. Let us
assume, for example, that after dissolving a portion of
carbonaceous chondrite in an organic solvent and
determining what waves are absorbed by the solution
we come to the conclusion that the solution contains
the hydrocarbon naphthalene. To check this let us
take a solution containing this hydrocarbon and com-
pare its absorption spectrum with that observed in the
meteorite extract. Identical spectra are the best proof
that the composition of the substance was correctly
inferred. The instruments used for investigating such
absorption spectra are called spectrographs. They are
often designed so that rays of all wavelengths may
pass successively through the substance under test,
and the instrument automatically records the degree
of absorption in the given substance of each wave
(actually in a very narrow range of wavelengths). As
a result, a curve is obtained oJ}. which the wavelength
in nanometres or angstroms (1A == 0.1 nm = 10- 8 cm'
is plotted on the axis of abscissas and the value tha
characterizes absorption (optical density, i.e., the loga-
rithm of the ratio of the intensity of incident light
to the intensity of the light that passes through the
solution; optical density is directly proportional to the
concentration of the substance), on the axis of ordina-
tes. Since absorption is proportional to the concentra-
34
tion of a substance, the content of a given] constituent
in the mixture can be determined quantitatively as
well as qualitatively.
For rapid analysis of the elements found in iron
meteorites, use can be made of instruments in which

Fig. 6. General view of apparatus for analyzing lunar soil in

vacuum

the substance under test is heated to a very high tem-

perature at which it radiates light waves itself. In
such instruments (for example, in styloscopes) analysis
is conducted by means of emission spectra. Hence, the
substance being tested is placed under conditions simu-
lating those in which it radiates when on a star or in
the upper atmosphere of the Sun. These are not the
only procedures of analysis. Other methods used are
fluorometry, radioautography (X-ray photography),

3* 35
study of the isotope composition and distribution of
mass of isotopes, magnetic investigations, ate. The
analysis of soil samples provided by spacecraft requires
the development of special techniques that exclude
the possibtlity of contamination of the samples by
substances of Earth origin. The analysis of the compo-
sition of gases contained in materials' of extraterrestrial
origin is performed in vacuum or in the atmosphere of
an inert gas. Figure 6 shows up-to-date apparatus for
analyzing soil samples delivered from the Moon by
Soviet automatic interplanetary stations. The apparatus
was designed and set up by Yu. Surkov, A. Kheifets,
E. Rudnitsky, K. Danilov, and V Glotov.!

See Lzuchenie tmezemnogo veshchestva v srede inerinogo

1
gaza t sverkhvysokom uakuume (Analysis of Extraterrestrial
Matter hi the Medium of an Inert Gas and Ultra-High Vacuum),
"Nauka" Publishers, Moscow. 197t.
 CHAPTER II

Chemical Composition
of Celestial Bodies.
The Solar System

1. METEORITES

Iron ,is the principal component of a large number

of meteorites (iron meteorites). Iron-stony meteorites:
(siderolites) and stony meteorites (chondrites and
ael1ondrites) also occur often. ~
Iron meteorites, in addition to iron, are usually
composed of nickel, cobalt and other metals. These
meteorites contain, on the average, 90 per cent iron,
8.5 per cent nickel, 0.6 per cent cobalt and approxi-
mately 0.01 per cent silicon. Alloys of iron and nickel
are known as kamacite (the ratio of nickel to iron is
0.06) or taenite (the ratio of nickel to iron is from
/().f4 to 1.0). Their combination is called plessite.
~Metals form crystal structures (Fig. 7). After polishing
.and pickling, the characteristic intersections of kama-
'bit~ "beams" can be seen; they are noticeable because
-of the difference in the ability of kamacite and taenite
to reflect light (Widmanstatten structure). Figure 8
J shows the photograph of an iron meteorite. This
Imeteorite fell in 1916 in the neighbourhood of Nikolsk-
~U~suriys~ and was described by O. Baklund in 1916.
r'.' he magnetic properties of this meteorite were studied
fbY N. Akulov and N. Bryukhatov. The meteorite
~~eontains 5.2 per cent nickel, 0.5 per cent cobalt, the
~~..emainder is iron. Although the isotope composition
~~f a great number of meteorites is similar to that of

t ~
Fig. 7. Cross section of iron meteorite "Routon" (the Widman-
statten structure is visible)

Fig. 8. Iron meteorite "Boguslavka" that fell on the Earth

in 1916 and on falling split apart into two parts
 rocks of Earth origin, the chemical analysis of meteori-
tes has made it possible to discover in them interesting
witnesses of the "life" of these celestial wanderers. It
waS found that the following isotopes ·occurred in
them: 26AI, 36CI, 44Ti and others which are formed
under the influence of cosmic radiation. 'Therefore
the intensity of cosmic radiation and its duration can
be determined on analyzing the isotopes.
The age of meteorites is found from the ratio of the
quantity of radioactive isotope to the quantity of
stable isotope. In investigations of iron meteorites it
was actually the content of radioactive argon (89 Ar)
and the stable isotope (88 Ar) that was determined.
The radioactive isotope is produced by the action of
cosmic rays on the nuclei of atoms in the meteorite,
while the stable isotope accumulates in the course of
time as a product of the decay of the radioactive isotope:
the greater the content of the radioactive isotope, the
younger the meteorite. In this way the age of certain
meteorites was established; it turned out to lie in the
range of 4 to 50 million years.
About 90 per cent of the meteorites that have
fallen to the Earth belong to the class of chondrites.
Chondrites have a very peculiar structure: they con-
sist of small particles resembling congealed drops of
silicates; these drops are called chondrules. The drop-
like particles are cemented by the same substance from
(which they were formed (Fig. 9). Chondrites consist,
in the main, of silicates and a small amount of iron,
nickel, ferrous sulphide. According to A. Vinogradov
the composition of chondrites includes olivine (44.53
per cent), pyroxene (26.87 per cent), feldspar (11.7 per
cent), iron and nickel (together 9.0 per cent) and ferrous
sulphide (6.97 per cent). The minerals olivine, pyro-
xene, feldspar occur on the Earth as well. The chemical
composition of olivine is (MgFe)2Si04; of pyroxene,
39
Me Me2 (Si 20e) where Mel = Ca, Na, K; l\Ie2 = Mg,
Fe,l AI, Ti. Feldspar consists of aluminosilicates.
The mineralogical composition and structure of
chondrites give grounds for assuming that these ~" ine-
rals were formed at a temperature not exce .~ding
,;

,~ r
~,'"'.f t~~:'
.,,-~
. ",
' "...~
\".,':.~W'~
. . ;" ":"~
..
j~
L\ "-<.,""'(~". .
,

" " " " , ' , , '

{ " "

t . ," . : \
. " rl-'
~ ~."

rI
, • , ... .r-, I

'oj l,.' . , " I~,

'w't~:!:" ~'
",':,..',' " '.}, ', ' ".
r
','\
'. ......i~
,.~}
~,;., 't"'''.,' ,',,'." "

,"
"'~~" .~,'y
"I... .' t"",
•. ,,'.",

'V,,··.,:.,_.",',' ~

"l';,"
r
'~)':' ',' ..1.:
'-~~t""

ii) I)
;:\,.!.~
,
Co'
....
'.',,j ;.
. ,,~
t:> '

~/-",:\,':~. J
..wi:: '1'

Fig. 9. Chondrites after removal of cementing rock (from a

paper by A. Vinogradov)

1000°C. Then, apparently, they slowly (in the course

of 108 years) cooled down to 300°C. Fusion probably
occurred at a high pressure and then the volatile
substances were lost and rapid crystallization took
place.
Achondrites do not differ much from chondrites in
their composition but they do not contain congealed
drops, chondrules, Some of the achondrites are very
similar to the Earth rock basalt. The abundance of
individual elements in meteorites is given in Table 1.
40
 Table 1

Abundance of Certain Elements in Meteorites

(According to B. Levin and S. Kozlovskaya)

to-
Arnlc
number
I Element I Number
(per t 06 I
A to-I
mto
silicon atoms) number
Element I (per
Number
106
silicon atoms)

3 Lithium 45 17 Chlorine 3,500

4 Beryllium 0.5 19 Potassium 3,000
5 Boron 6 20 Calcium 63,000
6 Carbon 6,000 26 Iron 723,000
7 Nitrogen 10 27 Cobalt 2,400
8 O~ygeI;l 3,410,000 28 Nickel 38,000
9 Fluorine 200 30 Zinc 50
11 Sodium 40,000 31 Gallium 10
12 Magnesium 900,000 37 Rubidium 7
13 Alumi- 82,000 38 Strontium 18
nium 40 Zirconium 50
14 Silicon 1,000,000 41 Niobium 1
15 Phospho- 8,000 44 Buthe... 1.6
rus nium
16 Sulphur 100,000 45 Rhodium 0.6

In the first place it should be noted that meteorites

contain relatively large quantities of elements with
even atomic numbers, and secondly, that elements
with small atomic mass predominate in them. The
first fact is associated with the particular properties
of atomic nuclei having an even charge; the second,
with the conditions under which the elements are for-
med in celestial bodies (see below).
Of special interest are carbonaceous chondrites which
contain 20 per cent water and up to 5 per cent carbon.
Compounds of carbon combined with hydrogen, nitro-
41
gen, sulphur and other elements have also been found
in them.
Apparently, carbonaceous chondrites were never
exposed to the action of high temperatures. They
perhaps correspond most closely in their composition
to that of the original cosmic dust cloud from which
it is supposed the formation of planets began.
Carbonaceous chondrites contain organic compounds
and are a rather rare type of meteorites. There are
several varieties of carbonaceous chondrites (about 30).
In them have been found hydrocarbons (aliphatic,
cycloaliphatic, aromatic), carboxyl acids, complex high-
molecular compounds having a system of condensed
nuclei in their molecules, stable free radicals, etc.
(Fig. 10). Carbonaceous chondrites also contain sulphur,
carbonates, water of constitution-; the content of deute-
rium (heavy hydrogen) in the organic compounds of
chondrites is greater than in "Earth" substances 2.
Organic matter in carbonaceous chondrites is con-
tained in a quantity of 30-50 mg per 1 g of matter;
not all substances can be extracted by organic solvents.
The following substances are usually used as solvents:
water; methyl, ethyl, butyl alcohols; a mixture of
benzene and ethyl alcohol; chloroform; petroleum
ether; tetrachloromethane; benzene. The extract from
meteorites of different types contains from 24 to 48
per cent carbon, 5-8 per cent hydrogen, 2-4 per cent
nitrogen, 2-8 per cent sulphur, 1-5 per cent halogens
(probably, chlorine) and 38-48 per cent oxygen (the
remainder).

1 Water of constitution is chemically combined water con-

tained in compounds but not present as free molecules in them.
2 It should be noted that other types of chondrites (enstati-
te chondrites) may contain organic matter which can be ext-
racted by certain solvents.

42
 By means of chromatography, Iluoro-capillary ana-
lysis, infrared spectroscopy, ultraviolet spectroscopy

Carbon-containin9 matter in meteorites

Fig. 10. Carbon-containing matter in meteorites (according to

G. Vdovykin). Composition is shown by solid lines in boldface;
the probable interrelationship between different forms of car-
bon, by dotted lines

and other methods, many of the constituents of the

mixture of organic compounds have been determined.
Carbonaceous chondrites also contain gases. The gases

43
were analyzed by mass spectroscopy. In the gaseous
phase of three carbonaceous chondrites M. Shtudier,
R. Khayats and E. Anders have found hydrogen, he-
lium, methane, water, carbon monoxide CO, nitrogen,
nitric oxide NO, argon-40, carbon dioxide CO2 , butane,.
carbon oxysulphide, sulphur dioxide 802, carbon disul-
phide, krypton, xenon, toluene, and even naphthalene;
ethyl and propylene benzene, dichlorobenzene, anthra-
cene and phenanthrene. An astonishing variety in-
deed! How could all these compounds be formed?
From where were they brought to us by such a small
piece of mysterious carbonaceous chondrite? What
part in the formation of these molecules was played
by the radiation that spreads throughout space? Every
question is a problem. Here are inert gases and together
with them the active molecules of carbon oxysulphide
COS, nitric oxide NO, sulphur dioxide 802, etc.;
the aromatic hydrocarbons, condensed cyclic or ring
compounds: benzene, naphthalene, anthraoene:

(~(I/I
,,~,~,~

Benzene Naphthalene Anthracene

How could their complex rings be formed? Under

what conditions were the initial substances? Aromatic
hydrocarbons predominate while for some reason or
other there is no ethane present; the absence of ammo-
nia is especially amazing. Evidently our knowledge of
the chemical conditions in space is not sufficient as yet.
In order to ascertain the part played by radiation
in the decomposition of hydrocarbons, special experi-
ments were carried out with bituminous oil shale.
The shale was exposed to a dose of radiation of from
44
300 to 3000 mrad-, Under ordinary conditions of radio-
lysis (radiolytic decomposition) of complex organic
compounds, methane and ethane are always produced.
Ethane and methane were actually obtained in model
experiments; there is neither ethane nor propane in
meteorites, consequently radiolysis did not play an
important role in the change of the state of organic
matter of carbonaceous chondrites.
I t is to be regretted that the results of analyses of
extracts conducted by different authors do not agree
very well; and the compositions of like fractions obtai-
ned from various specimens of carbonaceous chondrites
also differ from each other.
Among the saturated hydrocarbons found were paraf-
fin (about 17 per cent) and cycloalkanes (in varying
quantities). The largest per cent falls on cycloalkanes
with one ring (from 17 to 28 per cent); the smallest,
on polycyclic molecules consisting of 5-6 rings (from
6.4 to 11 per cent). Alkanes occur in quantities from
one to tens of micrograms per 1 g of matter (ug/g):
these hydrocarbons contain from 15 to 23 carbon atoms.
Carbonaceous chondrites also contain oxygenous orga-
nic compounds.
Very small quantities of the following substances
have been found: alcohols, phenolic compounds and
fatty acids. Saccharoses (23 flg/g); glucose, mannose
and arabenose were found in an alcohol extract of
carbonaceous chondrites. There are also sulphur-con-
taining compounds; their analysis however is difficult
because sulphur in meteorites is present in the free
state in appreciable quantities and can react with
the hydrocarbons in the process of the analysis. Chlo-
rine is contained both as ionic compounds and as

1 Mrad is the unit of radiation dose which is absorbed,

equal to fO ergs per gram of the medium.
chlorine derivatives of the aromatic hydrocarbons-
chlorobenzene and dichlorobenzene.
One of the most acute and important questions
arising in the chemical investigations of carbonaceous
chondrites is, of course, the question of the possible
biological origin of the compounds carried by these
queer meteorites.
It cannot be said with certainty that a particular
chemical composition indicates biological or non-bio-
logical origin of a substance. The compounds found
in cells can originate outside of living systems as
well.
It is true that amino acids, the constituents of pro-
teins, can suggest the biological origin of a substance,
but that is all. It has been proved that amino acids
are produced, for example, during electric discharges
in mixtures of methane and hydrogen, water, ammonia.
Amino acids, apparently, are contained in carbonaceous
chondrites - most likely glycine and phenylalanine.
The question whether other amino acids are pre-
sent is not satisfactorily answered as yet. The accuracy
of up-to-date analysis (chromatographic) is so high
that traces of amino acids that get into the substance
under test from the fingers of the analyst can be detec-
ted; therefore the presence of certain amino acids in
the extracts of meteorites was compared with their
presence in the fingerprints of the analyst and it was
found that the occurrence of amino acids in the finger-
prints almost coincided with that ascribed to the meteo-
rite substance, i.e., the amino acids detected were
simply impurities introduced by the analyst himself,
The same thing happened in the case of chloronaphtha-
lene which was believed to have been brought from
outer space, hut which actually got into the substance
being tested from the polish used for parquet floors
in the laboratory. .
46
 If purely chemical analysis cannot elucidate the
origin of organic matter in chondrites, then perhaps
physico-chemical methods can be of assistance. As
a matter of fact, certain substances in living organisms
possess a property on the basis of which the origin
of the substance can be properly inferred. This pro-
perty is known as optical activity.
The electromagnetic oscillations of a light wave
occur in an ordinary ray of light in different planes.
If the ray of light is passed through a crystal of the
mineral Iceland spar, a wave can be isolated in which
oscillations will occur in one plane. Such light is said
to be plane-polarized. The polarized ray of light in
passing, for instance, through water does not change
the plane of polarization; but if sugar is added to the
water, the plane of polarization of the ray after it has
passed through this solution will be rotated through
a certain angle. Substances that rotate the plane of
polarization are called optically active substances.
The rotation of the plane of polarization depends on
the arrangement of atoms around a definite asymme-
trical atom of the molecule. During a reaction the chan-
ces that laevorotary or dextrorotary substances (those
that rotate the plane of polarization to the left or to
the right, respectively) will be obtained are equal
because the arrangements of atoms corresponding to
rotation in one or the other direction are related to
each other as an object to its mirror image. Hence,
if the reaction is carried out in a test tube or flask,
there is always obtained a mixture of compounds rotat-
ing the plane of polarization in opposite directions,
i.e., a racemic mixture (that is optically inactive),
But if the compound was formed in a cell, it can be
optically active because for the cell it is not all the
same how the atoms are arranged around the centre
of the molecule.
47
 That is why on detecting optically active compounds
in any material, the investigator would have grounds
for assuming the biological origin of the material.
Obviously, proof of the presence in meteorites of sub-
stances that rotate the plane of polarization would
indicate the biological origin of part of the organic
compounds brought to the Earth from outer space.
This would be evidence of the existence of some forms
of life in celestial bodies. Slight rotation of the plane
of polarization was actually observed by a group of
scientists working in Nad's laboratory, but Khayats
doubted their results which are being discussed to this
day. Thus, the most interesting problem of space che-
mistry is' still awaiting its solution. Let us briefly
summarize what we have already learnt abo.ut meteo-
rites.
The investigation of meteorites has yielded much
valuable information. It has been ascertained that the
composition of meteorites does not differ essentially
from that of terrestrial matter. Assumptions have been
made that "meteorite matter is the parent matter from
which the planets of the solar system were formed.
Even the age of a meteorite and the duration of its
travel in space can be surmised from the isotope com-
position. The presence of organic compounds in car-
bonaceous chondrites indicates important processes
occurring at relatively low temperatures and raises
the vital problem of the possibility of the biological
origin of complex organic molecules. The scope of our
knowledge of outer space is ever broadening and the
continuation of investigations promises the discovery
of new physico-chemical processes. At the present
time the process of formation of diamonds in meteorites
is attracting much attention.
Do diamond meteorites exist in nature? Can the
appearance in the sky of a multi-ton sparkling crystal
48
or diamond shower be expected? Among the works of
Jules Verne, the talanted French novelist, is the witty
fantastic novel "The Golden Meteor". It is about an
inventor who devised the means of regulating the
motion of meteorites and directed to the Earth an enor-
mous meteorite that consisted solely of gold. When
he understood, at the last moment, that this mass of
gold would inevitably become the cause of conflicts
and war between nations and would only bring suffer-
ing to the people, the inventor dropped the burning
hot meteorite into the ocean. There are no golden
meteorites and none are expected; neither are there
any diamond mountains in outer space, but diamonds
are found in meteorites and, what is of special impor-
tance, they are formed in them by collisions. The occur-
rence of diamonds in meteorites is quite rare and only
a few diamond-containing meteorites are known.
The first information about such meteorites was
obtained in 1886. In the former Penzenskaya province
near the village of Novy Urey a stony meteorite fell
down with a crash and a flash; according to all avail-
able data it broke up into three pieces. This event
was described in great detail by P. Baryshnikov,
a teacher, who sent the piece of the meteorite that
he had found to St. Petersburg for investigation. The
second piece sank into a swamp, while the fate of the
third piece was altogether incredible-it was eaten
up! The villager who found in his field a black stone
that obviously fell from the sky, accompanied by
startling light and sound phenomena, concluded that
the stone would possess miraculous power and could
favourably influence the course of an illness. The stone
was broken up into small pieces and sold; the "medi-
cinal" pieces were ground to a powder, then swallowed
with water. But such medical treatment, naturally,
brought neither benefit nor harm.
.-01266 49
 The piece that was sent to St. Petersburg was luck-
ier - it fell into the hands of Professor P. Lachinov,
the chemist and Associate Professor M. Erofeev, the.
mineralogist,. and underwent careful analysis. It was
found that the meteoric matter contained small grains

Fig. tt. Stony meteorite "Novy Urey" (photo from a paper by

G. Vdovykin)

of diamond (of the carbonado type); according to

rough calculation the weight of the meteorite amoun-
ted to about 2 kg and that of diamond constituted
approximately 17.62 g. This meteorite went down in
the history of science under the name of the "Novy
Urey" meteorite and the scientists were awarded the
Lomonosov Prize by the Academy of Sciences. Subse-
quently this type of meteorite came to be called urey-
lites; only five ureylites are known and they are
carefully kept in museums in Leningrad, London,
Calcutta and Kalgoorlie (in Australia).
50
 The huge iron meteorite that created the Canyon
Diablo also contains diamond inclusions. Figures 11,
12, 13 show the photographs of the meteorite "Novy

Fig. 12. Diamond particles from meteorite "Novy Urey" (photo

from a paper by G. Vdovykin)

Urey", diamond particles isolated from it by the well-

known investigator G. Vdovykin and a large diamond
particle in the meteorite from the Arizona crater,
respectively. Perhaps, of the greatest interest and
value are not diamonds themselves (there are so few

7092
of them and they are of low quality) but rather the
knowledge of the conditions under which they were
formed. The study of this question led to the conclu-
sion that diamonds are produced in stony meteorites

Fig. 13. Large diamond particle from "Canyon Diablo" meteo-

rite (photo from a paper by G. Vdovykin)

as the result of the collision of asteroids. In the Ari-

zona iron meteorite, diamonds were produced as the
result of the impact of the meteorite against the Earth.
At the very moment the terrific explosion and the
terrible crash on the surface of the Earth took place,
diamond crystals were formed from graphite inclu-
sions. This may seem unlikely but direct experiments
carried out in 1961 showed that at a temperature of
about 800°C the instantaneous increase of pressure up
to 600 thousand atmospheres gives rise to the forma-
tion of diamond from graphite in a millionth fraction
52
of a second! At the present time artificial diamonds
are obtained in various ways and, of course, from the
scientific and practical stand point all these facts are
very important. On the other hand, the fact that under
certain conditions it has become possible to produce
diamonds in the laboratory helps us to get an idea
of the nature of the motion of asteroids and also of the
process of the formation of diamonds in the crust of
the Earth.

2. CHEMISTRY OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM

Spectroscopic analysis, the investigations of mete-

orites, astronomical and astrophysical data have made
it possible to draw well-founded conclusions concer-
ning the chemical composition of the parts of the uni-
verse nearest to us, i.e., of the solar system. The pecu-
liar behaviour of substances of known composition
under conditions existing in outer space also facilitates
the solution of important problems associated with
the evolution of celestial bodies, namely with the life
of stars and galaxies. Thus, the methods and problems
of chemistry are interwoven with the problems of cos-
mology, the branch of science that deals with the the-
ories of the origin and evolution of the universe.
Our planetary system, according to the theory of
O. Shmidt, originated from a cloud consisting of a mix-
ture of cosmic gas and dust. There is no single point
of view on the origin of the gas-dust cloud. O. Shmidt
assumed that it originated as the result of interstellar
matter being captured by the Sun. V. Fesenkov sugges-
ted that the cloud be formed together with the Sun.
The further evolution of this cloud was associated with
a process of gradual aggregation, i.e., growth of the
mass of the particles.
53
 There is hardly any loss of energy when molecules
and atoms collide (elastic collision); when, however,
a molecule and dust particle or two dust particles
'collide, a part of their kinetic energy is dissipated
(i.e., is converted to heat and radiated as infrared
rays.)
That is why the random motion within the cloud
diminished while the rotary motion around the Sun
was retained. A flat rotating disc was formed in
which condensations of matter appeared. As the con-
densations increased in mass and were further con-
densed, the growing gravitational forces gradually
attracted the surrounding matter to them to form the
nuclei of planets. The orbital angular momentum of
the particles from which the planet was formed must
equal the sum of the orbital and rotary' angular momen-
tum of the planet.
In Shmidt.'s theory the partial dissipation of mecha-
nical energy in the form of heat is also taken into
account. This made it possible to understand certain
feat.ures of the rotation of a planet (direct rotation).
This theory showed the conformity with natural laws
of the increase in radii of the orbits of planets and
explained the difference in mass of planets of the
Earth group and of far-distant planets (Fig. 14).
Possibly, five billion years ago in the cloud of gas
and dust (i.e., a nebula) relatively slow motion of
masses of matter occurred. The action of the magnetic
field surrounding this nebula of stars decreased the
total angular momentum, and this influence remained
effective up to t.he time a certain density of matter of
the nebula was achieved. Subsequently, condensation
of the nebula took place without lossin angular momen-
tum and resulted in the separation of an equatorial
disc from the mass of the rotating matter. The for-
mation of the disc and its magnetic interaction with
Fig. 14" ~chematic drawing showing the formation of stars and
planets from a .cloud of gas and dust
the central part of the nebula would result, as shown
by the astronomer F. Hoyle, in deceleration of rota-
tion of the central part (i.e., the Sun) and subsequent
withdrawal and breaking up of the disc. It is due to
the breaking up and the condensation of aggregated
matter that the planets were formed. All these processes
could proceed in this way only in comparatively-cool
stars.
The temperature of the fragments into which the
disc was broken up decreased rather rapidly and,
accordingly, the possibility of the occurrence of par-
ticular reactions varied.
Meteorites, according to all data obtained, cons-
titute the primary matter of the solar system, and
their composition underwent relatively small changes
from the moment they had been formed.
According to A. Vinogradov the material from
which the planets of the solar system were formed was
the same substances as those contained in chondrites,
i.e., stony meteorites. It is clear, that if this is true,
there are no grounds for expecting considerable diver-
sity in the chemistry of the Earth, planets and meteoric
matter. The elements everywhere in space are the very
same ones and only specific conditions in different
regions of the universe result in the different distribu-
tion of the elements and the preferred formation of
particular molecules.

3. THE SUN AND PLANETS OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM

The chemical investigation of the Sun is carried
out by spectroscopic analysis. In fact, the study of the
spectrum of the central star of our planetary system
turned out to be so fruitful that it has surpassed the
achievements of analytical chemistry. The noble gas
helium was first discovered on the Sun by spectrosco-
56
 pic analysis and only later was found on the Earth
ihelios is the Greek for Sun; helium, of the Sun). It
should not be deemed, however, that it is easy to
interpret the meaning of the innumerable electromagne-
tic oscillations that come from the Sun to the Earth
and pass into spectrographs in observatories. A great
number of interferences and complications must be
eliminated by the spectroscopist observing the burning
hot surface of the Sun, and sometimes the unusual
conditions in which the spectrum is excited entirely
distort the familiar picture and give rise to erroneous
conclusions. Nevertheless, for more than a hundred
years the spectrum of the Sun is under study, and at
the present time the composition of the Sun, in the
main, is known.
The immense mass of this star emits a continuous
spectrum, just as any body would, that is heated to
such a temperature at which the electrons become
practically free, escaping from the atoms. The visible
surface of the Sun is called the photosphere and is the
source of the continuous spectrum; the gases on the
surface are strongly ionized, ionization growing rapidly
from the interior. That is why the gases almost imme-
diately lose their transparency. As a result the photo-
sphere seems to have a sharp boundary line although,
as a matter of fact, the density of matter in it varies
gradually.
The photosphere is not homogeneous: it has a dis-
cernible granular structure; bright flashes arise in it
and dark spots appear. The sun spots possess magnetic
properties and occur in pairs displaying opposite mag-
netism: one spot corresponds to the north pole, while
the other one, to the south pole of a magnet bar.
The temperature of the photosphere (the mean tem-
perature, since the photosphere consists of many layers)
is equal to approximately 6000°C. Rays from the
57
photosphere penetrate the upper cooler layers of the
Sun's atmosphere. The atoms and ions of various ele-
ments present in these layers absorb the spectral (re-
quencies which they emit themselves. For example,
sodium absorbs yellow rays (two characteristic yellow
lines in the spectrum) which are emitted by glowing
sodium vapours. On absorbing these rays (energy
quanta), the excited sodium atom, of course, very soon
emits them again, but the emitted quantum will not
necessarily go in the same direction in which the initial
quantum came; most probably, in this case, the quan-
tum will have some other direction (a more or less
random one). As a result of this, in the continuous
spectrum of the photosphere there appear the dark
lines observed by J. Fraunhofer, i.e. absorption
spectra.
There is, however, a very faint light even in these
dark (as compared to the general background) bands.
Moreover it is possible, by shutting off the rest of the
spectrum and successively projecting different parts
of the solar disc where there are certain dark bands
(characteristic of sodium, for instance), to obtain an
idea of the distribution of a given element on the
surface of the Sun and even to photograph the entire
picture. The instrument for photographing the Sun
in monochromatic light is called a spectroheliograph,
Above the photosphere there is a thin "reverse"
layer (500 km thick). This name stems from the fact
that during total solar eclipses, when the Moon covers
the photosphere, instead of the dark lines in the spec-
trum bright lines emitted by this layer can be observed.
Still higher lies the chromosphere which is slightly
reddish in colour. This colour is one of the spectral
lines of hydrogen. The chromosphere is about 6000 km
thick and scattered in it are various atoms and ions,
in particular ia great 'number of calcium ions.. About

5~.
400 lines belonging to different elements were observed
in the chromosphere spectrum.
Still farther from the surface of the Sun is the solar
corona, a very unstable and mobile part of the atmo-
sphere of the Sun. It contains atoms, ions and electrons;
there is evidence that iron ions are present in the corona,
Le., atoms that have lost part of their electrons
(under these conditions iron atoms lose up to nine
electrons). The lines of calcium, argon, nickel and
other elements have been found in the spectrum of the
corona. The temperature of the corona is very high
and reaches millions of degrees (the reason for this
is not known).
Hydrogen constitutes almost 75 per cent of the
mass of the Sun; helium, about 24 per cent; all the
other elements make up only 1-2 per cent. However,
on an Earth scale, 1 per cent of the Sun's mass is not
so little. The mass of the Sun is equal to 1.99 X 1083 g;
consequently a hundredth part is 1.99 X 1081 g or
1.99 X 10 25 tons! Even a millionth part of this enor-
mous quantity is 3350 times greater than the mass of
the Earth. The amounts of individual elements are
determined by the relative intensity of the spectral
lines, and sufficiently accurate data has been obtained
for 60 elements; for elements whose atomic mass
exceeds 57 the data is less accurate. The quantity of
oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, sodium, iron and nickel
on the Sun is rather large; that of lithium is small;
boron and fluorine were found combined with hydro-
gen; radium, uranium, bismuth, rhenium are present
in negligible amounts, while the artificial elements
of the actinide series and unstable radioactive ele-
ments (promethium, astatine) as well as the halogens
were not found at all.
According to the data of V. Cherdyntsev, the Sun's
atmosphere contains the following amounts af ele-
59
ments per one atom of oxygen:

hydrogen -560 atoms aluminium -0.0040 atom

carbon -0.37 atom silicon -0.037 atom
nitrogen -0.76 atom sulphur -0.016 atom
magnesium -0.062 atom potassium -0.00029 atom
sodium -0.0035 atom calcium -0.0031 atom

The presence of gold (the alchemists' symbol for

which was the Sun) is doubted; in any case there is
not very much of it on the Sun. Attention should be
paid to the abundance of hydrogen and helium. This
is very significant and will be discussed below.
Now let us turn our attention to the planets surroun-
ding the Sun. I t should be noted that in general the
chemical analysis of planets is very difficult because
planets only reflect sunlight and therefore their com-
position must be inferred from the spectrum of reflec-
ted light (reflection spectrum). Such spectra are dif-
ficult to interpret and often fail to give grounds for
unambiguous conclusions. The data obtained concer-
ning the composition of the atmosphere of planets is
somewhat more reliable. If spectroscopic analysis is not
always capable of giving information about all the
molecules (sometimes rather complex) which can be
formed in the atmosphere of the planets, theoretical
calculation comes to its aid. At the first glance this
may seem to be a hopeless task: how can the physicist,
chemist and mathematician without investigating the
atmosphere of a distant planet calculate its composi-
tion?
Actually, of course, they must know something
about the planets, but the salient feature of their work,
like that of the paleozoologist, is that from very m.eager
initial data it leads to broad and important conclu-
sions. From one bone found in a fossil of times long
60
past, the paleozoologist familiar with the iaws of his
science can construe a picture of the general appearance
of an animal, and from the concentration of three, four
or five elements the physico-chemist can predict just
what compounds are formed. Of course, it is necessary
to know the temperature, pressure and the properties
of the initial and end products; hut the physical chara-
cteristics are usually more or less known and the laws
of chemistry, as has been ascertained, are the same
everywhere in the universe.
The basic law of investigations is that under defi-
nite conditions, for instance, at a given temperature
and pressure a reaction can proceed spontaneously only
if it performs positive work. The work of a reaction
is a relatively simple concept. It is known, for example,
that in an operating storage battery a chemical reac-
tion takes place between lead, its oxide and sulphuric
acid. This reaction resulting in the formation of lead
sulphate produces electrical energy. If, after discharge
we desired to return the storage battery to its former
state, Le., to obtain the initial substances we would
have to perform work, that is to recharge the battery
by means of an external source. The storage battery
discharges by itself although it must be charged. This
means that the reaction proceeds ·spontaneously, per-
forming useful positive work.
By applying thermodynamics it has become pos-
sible to prove that a relationship exists between the
work of a reaction and the equilibrium constant of
a reaction. From the general course in chemistry it is
known that when equilibrium is attained in a chemical
reaction, the rates of the direct and reverse processes
become equal.
The equilibrium constant, for example, for the
reaction

61
is the ratio at equilibrium of the concentrations of the
molecules participating in the reaction:
(C0 2 ]2
K=[02][CO]2

The useful work of a reaction at a given temperature

can be determined from the equilibrium constant and
the concentrations of the initial and end products
(reactant and reaction products, respectively).
The maximum useful work at different concentra-
tions and temperatures can be calculated by means
of thermodynamic equations. Thus, it is possible to
foretell what reactions can take place and what reac-
tions cannot occur under given conditions. Evidently,
knowing approximately the conditions on the planets,
stars or on our Earth in those ancient times it is pos-
sible to determine what reactions proceeded and what
products were formed. In order that such calculations
make any sense it is only necessary to be sure that equ-
ilibrium does exist in the celestial body under study.
However, the question of equilibrium is not a simple
one. Powerful radiation and rapid processes which are
very likely to occur in outer space are apt to disturb
chemical equilibrium and then thermodynamic calcu-
lations will be of no use.
At one time the majority of scientists working in
the field of space chemistry and physics believed that
there were no grounds for calculating reactions proceed-
ing from the assumption of equilibrium. Thus, they
rejected one of the most reliable means of investigating
possible reactions. In recent years, however, a marked
change in the attitude towards the problem of equiltbri-
urn has been manifested. More and more data and
theoretical reasoning speak in favour of the possibility
of the equilibrium state being attained in chemical
processes on celestial bodies. If equilibrium can be
62
achieved, then the modelling and calculation of che-
mical systems is quite possible.
E. Lippinkot, R. Ekk, and K. Sagan gave their
attention to the carbonaceous chondrites already spoken
of above. As is known, a great number of- organic com-
pounds of all kinds are contained in carbonaceous
chondrites. If all these compounds were formed under
conditions close to those of equilibrium, an attempt
can be made to calculate, from the properties of these
compounds, what substances and in what proportions
must have been formed ill the mixture brought to
the Earth by the carbonaceous chondrites. It was assu-
med that gr'phite did not take part in the reactions
leading to equilibrium; graphite is not readily formed
from organic compounds, and scientists did not take
it into account in their calculations.
Calculations performed with the aid of computers
have showed that proceeding from carbon, hydrogen,
nitrogen, sulphur, oxygen and chlorine, carbonaceous
chondrites would actually contain the very compounds
that were found in them by chemical analysis and
in about the same proportions.
The success of these calculations prompted the
authors to attempt the calculation of the atmosphere
of planets. E. Lippinkot, R. Ekk and K. Sagan assu-
med that equilibrium is reached in the lower layers
of the atmosphere into which ultraviolet radiation fails
to penetrate. In order to appraise the accuracy that
could be attained in the calculation of the composition
of the atmosphere of planets, the investigators calcu-
lated the composition of the Earth's atmosphere and
compared the results of calculation with experimental
data. A study 'was carried out of the balance .of com-
pounds for all combinations of carbon, nitrogen, hydro-
gen and oxygen.

63
 An extract from the tabulated data obtained by
them is given below. The experiments corresponded to
a pressure of 1 atm and a temperature of 280oK. The
only equilibrium state corresponded to the composition
of the Earth's atmosphere:
nitrogen -0.78 parts by volume (by calculation)
oxygen -0.21 parts by volume (by calculation)
argon - 0.01 parts by volume (by calculation)
water vapours - 0.001 parts by volume (by calculation)
carbon dioxide - 3.3 X 10-4 parts by volume (by calculation)
This convincing result gives grounds for believing
that calculations of the composition of the atmospheres
of other planets carried out by these scientists are also
close to the truth.
Such calculations should proceed from the given
concentrations of substances in the atmosphere, and
then the concentrations which correspond to an equili-
brium state should be calculated. Thus, in the example
of the Earth's atmosphere the parts by volume of the
gases (0.780 for nitrogen, 0.209 for oxygen, etc.)
taken initially are those actually found in the atmos-
phere. To calculate the atmospheres of other planets
it is also necessary to begin with experimental data.
Lately, highly valuable information concerning the
composition of the atmospheres has been provided by
Soviet interplanetary stations. The value of the results
of calculation, of course, depends on the reliability
of the initial assumptions.
Thus calculations of the composition of the atmos-
phere of Venus were first based on the arbitrary assump-
tion that nitrogen predominates in it. Later when pre-
cise data on the composition of the atmosphere of Venus
was provided by the Soviet stations Venera-4 and
Venera-5, it turned out that this assumption was false
and that the main constituent of Venus's atmosphere
was not nitrogen but carbon dioxide. Consequently,
64
the former conclusions were no longer valid. If, however,
the initial suppositions are sufficiently grounded, the
equilibrium method can attain valuable results. As
concerns the atmosphere of Mars, the assumption of
equilibrium and the initial data available are, appa-
rently, reliable. Calculations lead to the conclusion
0K
that at a temperature of 240 and a pressure of 0.05 atm
the atmosphere of Mars contains from. 0.82 to 0.90
parts by volume of nitrogen, approximately 0.1 of
oxygen, the same amount of carbon dioxide and about
10-5 of water vapours. The quantities of other compo-
unds (in particular, oxides of nitrogen) are negli-
gible.
When studying the composition of the atmosphere
of Jupiter it was supposed that below the cloudy zone
the parts by volume of water are comparable with the
parts by volume of methane and ammonia, the pre-
sence of which on this planet is beyond doubt. Calcu-
lations were made for a pressure of 1 and 1000 atm
and a temperature of 200 and 350 oK, and the results
obtained were of great interest (see below).
The temperature of the upper layers of the atmos-
phere of a planet can be approximately measured with
the aid of a thermocouple placed in the focus of a teles-
cope. The heat radiated by the planet falls on one of
the junctions of the thermocouple while the other junc-
tion has a constant temperature. Under these condi-
tions there arises a temperature difference which pro-
duces in the thermocouple a thermoelectric current by
which the intensity of heat radiation is measured.

4. THE PLANETS
Prior to the development of spectroscopic analysis
of reflected light and other refined methods for deter-
mining the composition of the planets of the solar

5-01266 65
system it was supposed by some scientists that they
are all alike in composition. This is not so. Even the
comparison of the density of the matter of planets
shows that their composition cannot be the same.
Planets are clearly divided into two groups.
The planets nearest to the Sun (the inner planets)
have a density of from 5.62 to 3.35. The outer planets,
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, have a smaller
density: from 0.71 to 2.43 (see Table 2).
Table 2
Density of Planets

Planet Density

Mercury 5.62
Venus 5.15
Earth 5.517
~lar~ 4.00
Moon 3.35
Chondrite asteroids 3.5 (approx i mately)
Jupiter 1.35
Saturn 0.71
Uranus 1.60
Neptune 2.43
.Pluto ?

Mercury, Venus, the Earth, Mars, the Moon are

undoubtedly solid bodies. They consist of silicates,
aluminosilicates, carbonates and other minerals consti-
tuting their surface ernst. There is a core containing
the heavier elements with a large atomic mass in these
planets.
The giant planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Nep-
tune, consist of less dense materials: mainly hydrogen,
66
 helium, methane, ammonia and other gases. There is
insufficient evidence of the existence of a solid core
in these immense gaseous or semiliquid masses.
Mercury contains a ferromagnetic core! and has an
intense magnetic field. It is supposed that it is sur-
rounded by powerful radiation belts; then its atmos-
phere should be ionized toa high degree. One side of
Mercury is always turned to the Sun; the other side is
always in the dark. In order to measure the temperature
of Mercury Nicholson and Pettit placed a thermocouple
in the focus of a telescope of a 2.5-m diameter and mea-
sured the current appearing in the thermocouple due
to the infrared radiation of the planet. It was found
that the temperature of Mercury varies in a very wide
range, from -70 to +437°C. The low temperature
could have been even lower. The relatively small frost
on Mercury can probably be explained by the influx
of heat; possibly heat gets into the cold zones due to
corpuscular solar radiation deflected by the magnetic
field of the planet. For a long time the very existence
of an atmosphere on Mercury was questioned. Appa-
rently, the pressure of the atmosphere, consisting
mainly of nitrogen (90 per cent) and carbon dioxide
(10 per cent), lies in the range of 1 to 20 mm Hg.
Venus and Mars, like the Earth, have an iron core
surrounded by a mineral (principally silicate) layer.
On Venus there is a large amount of carbonates, the
thermal decomposition of which resulted in the accu-
mulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of this
planet.
According to the data provided by the Soviet
interplanetary stations Venera-4, Venera-5, Venera-6
and Venera-7 the atmosphere of Venus consists of
1 According to the data of S. Kozlovskaya, the total con-
tent of metallic iron in Mercury (in the core of the planet and in
the mantle) constitutes approximately 58 per cent.

5* 67
97 per cent of carbon dioxide and contains not more
than 2 per cent nitrogen, about 1 per cent water vapours
and not more than 0.1 per cent oxygen. The tempe-
rature on the surface of the planet is about 500°C;
the pressure, approximately 100 atm.
Before all this data became known, it was supposed
that Venus resembled the Earth and that there might
be life on it. Many fantastic novels were written that
dealt with the forms of life on Venus. Large beasts
(like the extinct dinosaur of the Mesozoic Era on the
Earth) were supposed to live in stifling hot swamps on
this planet enveloped in clouds. Actually, the con-
ditions on Venus exclude the possibility of the develop-
ment of life because the temperature on the surface
is too high. The majority of organic compounds decom-
pose at 500°C.
The next planet, which is farther from the Sun,
does not resemble the others. It is enveloped by an
atmosphere and seems to be bluish in colour. If travel-
lers from far-distant galaxies were to pay a visit to
the solar system, they would probably find this planet
to be the most interesting one; there must surely be
life on it. This is our Earth! According to all available
data life on the planets could occur only on the Earth
and Mars.
The scorched crust of Mercury, the burning hot
valleys and cliffs of Venus immersed in twilight because
of the dense clouds, the cold Moon and the ammonia-
methane masses of the giant planets are unsuitable
for supporting life, at least its higher forms. Therefore
the inhabitants of the Earth, with all due modesty,
have good reason to be proud of their homeland and
its remarkably diversified nature. What does the
Earth consist of? What is its chemistry? If it was not
very easy to answer such questions when discussing
the composition of planets, in this case difficulties of
68
 another kind arise. The material available to the
science that studies Earth chemistry, geochemistry
is so great that in the scope of this book it is impossible
to set down even the most fundamental facts known.
Nevertheless, we immediately answer the question
concerning what elements dominate in the composition
of the Earth; they are oxygen and silicon. These two
elements are found in so many atoms that they stand
out sharply against the others. However, we should
not jump to conclusions in a hurry. The Earth is not
homogeneous. Geochemists divide it into geospheres:
the atmosphere, the hydrosphere (consisting of water)
and the lithosphere, i.e., the solid part.
The atmosphere consists, as is known, of nitrogen
(78.08 per cent by volume) and oxygen (20.94 per
cent). Not everyone knows that more or less constant
constituents of the atmosphere are: argon (0.934 per
cent by volume; other inert gases constitute only
thousandth and tenthousandth parts of a per cent),
mercury (0.02 gamma/m")", iodine (1 gamma/m" and
on seashores up to 52 gamma/m") and radon in a still
smaller amount. This data pertains to the lower part
of the atmosphere, the troposphere. Besides, in the
atmosphere there are water va pours, carbon dioxide,
a very small amount of hydrogen and accidental impu-
rities.
I t is believed that the primary atmosphere of the
Earth disappeared. The secondary atmosphere, contain-
ing less inert gases, appeared as the result of degasifi-
cation of the interior of the Earth. The primary atmos-
nhere contained a relatively large amount of hydrogen.
The pressure of hydrogen according to S. Miller and
Kh. Yury, 4.5 billion years ago, was equal to 1.5 X

1 Gamma is a unit for measuring the quantity of a substan-

ce; it is equal to one millionth part of a gramm (Tr.)

69
X 10-3 atm. Assuming equilibrium, the investigators
concluded that the pressure of methane in those times
long past could be very great and nitrogen, probably,
was present in the form of ammonia. Hydrogen, ammo-
nia, nitrogen, methane, and probably the oxides of
carbon were the chief constituents of the primary
reducing atmosphere of the Earth.
Whereas the lower layers of the atmosphere in our
times have a constant composition and are in a state
close to that of equilibrium, in the higher layers equ-
ilibrium is disturbed by radiation. The upper regions
of the Earth's atmosphere already border on outer
space. The boundary line that separates these regions
from space is not a distinct one; the density of the
gases diminishes grad ually. There is a gradual increase
in the role of solar cosmic radiation in the chemical
reactions characteristic of the upper layers of the atmos-
phere. There is even a special term "chemosphere" for
regions where under the influence of solar radiation
the processes occur with the participation of ions and
elementary particles. The chemosphere lies approxi-
mately at a height of 100 km; the pressure there is
only 0.001 mm Hg,
At high altitudes, ultraviolet radiation ionizes
almost all the gas molecules. Oxygen in the chemo-
sphere is mainly in the nascent, i.e., in the atomic
state. The collisions of oxygen atoms result in the
formation of O2 molecules, and the interaction of
oxygen atoms and O2 molecules produces ozone:
°+°2==°3
The ozone produced partially reacts with hydrogen
to form tIle OI-I radical:
°3+H = OH + 0 2
The production of ozone plays an important part
in Earth chemistry. The fact is that ozone readily
70
absorbs ultraviolet rays and, protecting the surface
of the Earth from most of this radiation, it inhibits
photochemical reactions that destroy organic compounds.
It is supposed that this effect created favourable con-
ditions for the development of photosynthesis. Photo-
synthesis, i.e., the process of formation of carbohydrates
from carbon dioxide and water, catalyzed by chloro-
phyll, not only promoted the development of microor-
ganisms and plants but increased the concentration
of oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere. The oxygen that
we breathe appeared approximately 0.3 billion years
ago as the result of photosynthesis in living cells and,
partly, of photodissociation of water molecules in the
atmosphere.
Investigation of the upper layers of the atmosphere
is conducted with the aid of special rockets. One of
these rockets ejected a cloud of nitric oxide, NO,
at a height of 100 km. As a result of this, a bright
light appeared caused by the reaction between oxygen
atoms and nitric oxide molecules. This compound, as
is known, readily reacts with oxygen molecules, 02'
in air. The reaction of nitric oxide and oxygen atoms
in the upper layers of the atmosphere proceeded with
greater intensity and was accompanied by the radia-
tion of a light quantum:
NO+O ~ N02+hv (light)
Investigation of this phenomenon made it possible
to calculate the lower boundary of the atmosphere,
above which the oxygen molecules are, for the most
part, dissociated into atoms. This boundary is at
a height of about 95 km.
The Sun's radiation also causes dissociation of
nitrogen molecules. These stable molecules dissociate
in the upper part of the atmosphere into nitrogen
atoms though to a much less degree than oxygen mole-
71
cules (the number of nitrogen atoms produced is equal
to 1 per cent of the number of oxygen atoms). Nitrogen
and oxygen react in the atomic state to form oxides
of nitrogen, NO and N0 2 • Many molecules resulting
from processes occurring in the chemosphere carry
surplus positive or negative charges, i.e., they are mole-
cular ions. N+, N;, 0;, NO;, NO+, 0+ and other
ions are formed. Particles can react with each other
so t hat the charge is transferred from one to another,
for instance:
O++N 2=NO++N
0t+N 2 = NO++NO, etc.
In the daytime ionization in the atmosphere is
more intense; at night the number of ions diminishes.
The processes, in which ions are produced due to the
action of radiation or disappear or change due to various
reactions, always occur in the atmosphere.
Still greater chemical action "is exerted by the flow
of such particles as protons and electrons. Only neutrons
are an exception; they penetrate into celestial bodies
and space almost without any signs of interaction with
molecules or atoms.
Already in 1912 it became known that particles
burst into the Earth's atmosphere with an enormous
release of energy (sometimes reaching billions of elec-
tron volts), and many of them penetrate to the surface
of the planet. Every minute one particle falls, on an
average, on each square centimetre of the Earth's sur-
face. Later, it was proved that the particles observed
on the surface of the Earth are frequently secondary
particles, i.e., they are produced as the result of the
interaction of primary radiation and atoms and mole-
cules in the atmosphere. Primary radiation is made
up, first of all, of protons moving at a great velocity;
besides, in cosmic rays heavier particles were found;
the nuclei of helium, lithium, berrylium, boron, car-
bon, nitrogen, oxygen and other elements.
Up to now the origin of cosmic rays is a debatable
question. The most probable assumption is that cosmic
rays are produced as the result of thermonuclear reac-
tions in supernovae, somewhere deep in the Galaxy;
other reasons for the origin of this high-energy radia-
tion in space are also possible.
The low density of interstellar matter is favourable
for maintaining the ionic state: protons can wander
in space for a long time without attaching electrons.
The short-wave radiation of stars, for instance, the
Sun, is also conducive to the formation of ions.
E. G. Fermi proved that the interaction of a proton
with the magnetic fields present in space must cause
a gradual increase in the velocity of the proton. The
proton on accumulating an extremely high energy of
billions of billions of electron volts becomes an impos-
ing missile and its collision with an atom can, of
course, lead to a great variety of conversions. Thus,
in the upper layers of the atmosphere there ensues
a series of processes which result in the production
of secondary particles such as neutrons, 'V-quanta,
and the unstable particles called mesons.
On an average, every second 2.6 neutrons are formed
in 1 em" of the atmosphere. These neutrons constantly
supply the Earth with the l:C carbon isotope as the
result of the reaction
~4N +n 40- p+ 13C
About 10 kg of t:C are formed per year. Besides,
the following reactions proceed:
1~N+n-+~He+l1B and
l~N + n -+ ~H + liC
the latter reaction produces tritium (an isotope of
hydrogen).
 Protons are even capable of converting nitrogen
to beryllium (7Be):
l~N + p -+ 2jHe+ IBe
This isotope of beryllium was found in rain water.
Even the composition of the surface layers of rocks
changes slowly as a result of the constant bombardment
of cosmic rays.
In the hydrosphere, besides water, large quantities
of salts and organic compounds are found. This is very
important because, apparently, life was generated on
the banks of seas and oceans, where the borders of three
geospheres converged.
The average composition of the hydrosphere, in per
cent, is as follows: oxygen, 85.82; hydrogen, about
10.72; chlorine, 1.89; sodium, 10.6; magnesium, from
0.1 to 1; the content of all the other elements amounts
to 0.22 per cent. Among these other elements are boron,
fluorine, bromine, rubidium, lithium, iodine, phospho-
rus, zinc, iron, copper, arsenic, aluminium, lead, vana-
dium, manganese, selenium, nickel, tin, cobalt, molyb-
denum, titanium, germanium, scandium, mercury, sil-
ver, gold and even uranium and radium! The ocean
is verily a storehouse, a chemical storehouse, the
inexhaustible source of all kinds of compounds. It is to
be regretted that most of the compounds are very scat-
tered; their concentration consequently is very low and
this, of course, makes it difficult to obtain them from
the water.
The lithosphere is the outer solid rocky shell of
the planet, known as the crust of the Earth. The crust
consists of a thin sedimentary zone of a magnitude
(thickness) of only about 1.5 km, a''granite-gneiss zone
up to 40 km thick and a basalt zone of a thickness of
approximately 30 kID, that passes into the
mantle.

74
 The crust was formed by the gradual melting out
and, partly, degasification of substances in the mantle
(according to A. Vinogradov). In this process a redistri-
bution of substances took place: low-melting compounds
and elements migrated to the top zones, while the
high-melting substances concentrated in the bottom.
The most widespread elements in the Earth's core,
as has been already noted, are oxygen and silicon. More
than 49 per cent of the mass of the crust is that of oxy-
gen and 26 per cent that of silicon. Aluminium occupies
the third place-7.45 per cent of the mass; then comes
iron, 4.20 per cent; calcium, 3.25 per cent; sodium,
2.40 per cent; potassium, 2.35 per cent; magnesium,
2.35 per cent, hydrogen, 1 per cent; the content of all
the other elements is expressed by fractions of a per
cent. Calculation according to the number of atoms
(atom per cent) gives a somewhat different sequence of
elements. There is an abundance of hydrogen atoms
(see Table 3).
Table 3
The Most Widespread Elements in the Earth's Crust

Element IContent, atom

per cent
~ Element
Content, atom
per cent

Oxygen 53.39 Magnesium 1.72

Hydrogen 17.25 Calcium 1.41
Silicon 16.11 Iron 1.31
Aluminium 4.80 Potassium 1.05
Sodium 1.82 Carbon 0.51

The' content of each of the rest of the elements is

less than 0.5 per cent.
As can be seen, elements with low atomic masses
and small atomic numbers (the number of the element.

75
in Mendeleev's periodic system) predominate in the
Earth's crust, and oxygen, hydrogen, silicon and alu-
minium constitute the base of the core (according to
A. Fersman). However, lithium, beryllium, and boron
are contained in very small quantities; these are the
"scarce" elements.
Elements with even atomic numbers and even ato-
mic masses are more dominant in the crust than those
with odd atomic numbers and masses. This fact is
important and, as we shall see below, is. quite chara-
cteristic.
The relatively high temperature of the Earth undo-
ubtedly favoured the development of all kinds of chem-
ical reactions on its surface and especially in the wa ters
of the hydrosphere.
The Earth probably was never a blazing fiery globe
as was supposed for a very long time by astrophysicists.
The temperature of the Earth in the long distant past
could have been very high as compared to its tempera-
ture at the present time, but apparently, the tempe-
rature was never like that characteristic of the interior
parts of the Sun, for instance. The reason for the heating
of the globe was the decay of atoms of radioactive
elements. Thirty five years ago V. Khlopin, an outstan-
ding Soviet scientist, showed that the reserves of
radioactive substances in the Earth's crust are suffi-
cient to maintain the temperature of the Earth at the
present level. It is now believed that the Earth is
heated by the radioactive decay of the isotopes of
uranium, thorium and potassium. The role of the
heavy potassium isotope (4°K) perhaps was great in
the prebiological period of the development of the
Earth and is essential in our times as well.
The nonuniform distribution of this fuel is, of
course, the reason why heating does not proceed uni-
formly, and this gi ves rise to hot spots and zones of
76
high pressure. The Earth has not, as yet, reached a state
of thermal equilibrium or balanced geological struc-
ture. Earthquakes, volcanic and geyser eruptions indi-
cate constant activity of powerful chemical and physi-
cal forces in the interior of the Earth.
In the early periods of the evolution of the Earth,
when compounds with low melting points were melted
out, gases were also liberated and gradually formed
the Earth's atmosphere. The atmosphere thus produced
contained a small amount of inert gases although
they occur in relatively large quantities in the cosmic
interstellar matter. A few of them (helium, neon) are
the products of those nuclear reactions that are cons-
tantly taking place in the interior of stars.
Now let us discuss the nearest neighbour of the
Earth, the Moon (Fig. 15). There is absolutely no
atmosphere around the Moon. I ts outer shell consists,
apparently, of a solidified mass (the crust) under which
there is the more solid mantle. Above the crust there
is an outer layer (2 km) consisting of stones and rocks
crushed and fused together due to the heat evolved
by falling meteorites. The crust consists of basalt
rocks (25 km); under this layer lies coarse-grained
igneous rocks.
Chemical analysis of lunar soil samples provided
by Soviet automatic stations Luna and the Apollo
expeditions showed that the soil contains silicon dio-
xide, Si0 2 (40 per cent), aluminium oxide (11.2 per
cent), and also compounds of the metals: magnesium,
calcium, iron, titanium (in terms of the oxides 11.7,
10.7, 21.3, 37 per cent, respectively). The soil samples,
however, brought to the Earth by Luna-16 and Luna-20
differed from each other. As might have been expected,
the composition of rocks on the surface of the Moon
in various zones is different. Mass-spectrometric analy-
sis has made it possible to determine quantitatively
77
more than 70 elements that make up the composition
of lunar soil (regolith).
The Soviet interplanetary station Luna-16 took
the soil sam ple from the part of the 1\100n called Atare

Fig. 15. Photograph of the Moon

Foecunditalis (Sea of Fertility). In this "sea" the soil

is composed essentially of rocks close to basalt in
composition. There is a large number of inclusions
in it, which resemble fused glass-something like
glass globules. Luna-20 provided soil samples from
the continental part; there were fewer glass inclusions
in it. These samples were composed mainly of minerals
78
of the anorthosite type", The mineral anorthosite l~
found on the Earth; it belongs to the magmatic rocks
of the group of plagioclase feldspars. Usually anortho-
site consists of labradorite and inclusions of pyroxene.
Labradorite is a mixture of albite, NaAISi 30 g , and
anorthite, CaAI 2Si 20 s; it is characterized by a beautiful
play of colours (it is colourless or grey-white with
tints of blue-green). Many widespread minerals (gabbro,
basalt, diabase and porphyrite rocks) contain labrado-
rite; under the i.nfluence of water it forms hydromica
and kaolin.
Academician A. Vinogradov who supervised the
analysis of the Iunar soil observed that the solution of the
problem of the formation of anorthosites on the Moon
would help to understand the geological processes
on the Earth where anorthosites were found in ancient
rocks of an age of 3.5 billion years. Anorthosites are
extruded on the surface during rapid eruption of
magma at high temperatures. Thus, the Moon was
probably once a molten planet.
Iron in the fine-grained and free state was also
found in the lunar soil. It is of interest that this iron
is practically not oxidized in air. Minerals containing
iron were found, as well as those containing titanium
and nickel.
Table 4 (according to data of A. Vinogradov) pre-
sents the latest data on the composition of the lunar
soil taken from different regions of the Moon.
For comparison we'll give data on the composition
of soil from Mare Tranquillitatis (Sea of Tranquility)
provided by U. S. spacecraft; in this case crystalline

1 With the aid of an X...ray spectrometer it has been proved

that there is much more aluminium and silicon in the conti-
nental regions of the Moon than in its seas. The latter are cove-
red with dark lava while the continental regions consist of
rocks of 8 lighter colour-anorthosites.

79
 Table 4
Composition of Lunar Soil

Crystalline Crys tal line

basalt anor thosi te Soil Soil
Component rock with olivine (regolith) (regolith)
(Lu'na-16) (Luna-20) (Luna-16) (Luna-2O)

Silicon dioxide 42.95 44.4 41.90 44.4

Aluminium oxide 13.88 19.1 15.33 22.9
Ferrous oxide 20.17 6.9 16.66 7.03
Calcium oxide 10.8 13.3 12.53 15.2
Magnesium oxide 6.05 13.37 8.78 9.70
Titanium dioxide 5.5 0.52 3.36 0.56
Sodium oxide 0.23 0.48 0.34 0.55
Potassium oxide 0.16 0.47 0.1 0.10

and porous rock samples and lunar dust were analysed!

(see Table 5).
Uranium-236 and neptunium are also found in lunar
rocks. The uranium isotope is contained in larger quan-
tities than in Earth rocks (from 5 to 350 times more).
The amount of neptunium per 1 g of lunar dust amounts
to 25 million atoms. These elements were probably
formed on the Moon by the action of powerful streams
of high-energy protons liberated during solar flares.
The planet Mars, which has, perhaps, aroused the
most fervent arguments concerning the conditions pre-
vailing on its surface, has an atmosphere much more
rarified than that of the Earth. The atmospheric pres-
sure on Mars is only 0.08 of the Earth's atmospheric
pressure. The main constituents of the atmosphere of
this planet, according to all data available, are nitro-

1 It has been supposed by some scientists that there is water

in the permafrost layer or rocks on the Moon. '

80
~
Table 5
I
...
o
~
Lunar Rocks from Mare Tranquillitatis
0)
C)

Oxides, per cent

sample
Si02 I Ti{).l I A1203 I Fe 203/ FeO Icr 1 I I I
20 3 MnO MgO CaO Na2 0 I I
K20 P 205/ H2O

Crystalline
rock 40.77 11.82 7.92 0 19.79 0.33 0.22 7.74 11.58 0.51 0.29 0.18 0

Porous
rock 40.22 12.28 7.78 0 19.77 0.36 0.22 8.06 10.27 0.52 0.29 0.18 0

Lunar dust 42.25 7.24 13.53 0 15.80 0.27 0.20 7.97 11.96 0.43 0.13 0.14 0
gen and carbon dioxide. There is very little oxygeti
and water vapours on Mars, approximately a thousand
times less than in the Earth's atmosphere. The condi-
tions on Mars resemble somewhat the conditions in
the high-mountain regions of our planet. In general,
in view of the fact that the temperature in the summer-
time during the day is equal to approximately +10°C
and in the wintertime and at night it is about -90 G e,
it can he assumed that some forms of Martian life, in
particular vegetation, may exist. The spectra of light
reflected from the surface of Mars, studied by the
Soviet scientist Tikhov, resemble the reflection spectra
from the surface of the Earth in the regions covered
by forests; besides, the colour of certain parts of the
surface of Mars changes with the season, as it should
if the colour is due to reflection from vegetation."
It is quite possible that the chemical composition
of the compounds forming the surface of Mars is similar
to that of the Earth's surface and is one of the most
complex compositions in abundance and variety of
compounds.
The atmosphere and the temperature, radiation,
and pressure typical of Mars were simulated in labora-
tories on the Earth. It was found that even under
such drastic conditions life is in fact possible; unice-
lular organisms such as bacteria developed in model
layout.
Mars was studied at a close distance by the Soviet
automatic interplanetary station ll,Jars-llaunched from
the Earth on November 1, 1962 in the direction of
Mars, approaching it in 230 days. Various important
scientific data was transmitted by radio communi-
1 The study of the infrared spectrum of Mars, however, did
not reveal in it any signs characteristic of the chlorophyll
spectrum; that is why the existence of vegetation on Mars has
not been proved.

82
cation 61 times. Later in 1964-1969 the American
llJ ariner automatic interplanetary stations flow by the

Fig. 16. Surface of Mars (photograph taken by Mariner-4

at a distance of 12,000 km)

equatorial and polar regions of the planet and appro-

ached its surface at a distance of only about 3000 km
from it. The photographs relayed to the Earth showed
the mysterious red planet and the Moon bear a great
resemblance to each other (Fig. 16). The surface of
Mars is covered by numerous craters (after the photo-
6* 83
graphs were specially treated and studied 600 craters
of different sizes, from 2.8 to 180 km in diameter, were
observed on them). The circumpolar regions are cove-
red with a layer of snow, probably frozen carbon dioxide
known on the Earth as dry ice. Above the southern
polar region, methane and ammonia were found in the
atmosphere; it is possible that these gases are of biolo-
gical origin. Kiss believes that the atmosphere of Mars
contains nitric oxide, NO.
It is of interest that the presence of an atmosphere
on Mars was proved by comparing the size of the planet
as photographed in red and blue light. In blue light,
Mars seems to be larger because the atmosphere dispels
the blue part of the spectrum of sunlight to a greater
degree than the red part.
The possibility of the formation of organic compounds
under the conditions prevailing on Mars is of
the greatest interest because the answer to this ques-
tion is necessary for judging whether any forms of life
exist on this planet neighbouring ours.
In the spectrum of infrared rays reflected from
the dark regions of Mars there have been observed
three bands of wavelengths of 3.45, 3.58 and 3.68 um,
respectively. These bands are attributed to C - H
bonds and it is supposed that they denote the presence
of organic molecules such as carbohydrates. It is pos-
sible that the bands are due to the presence of acetal-
dehyde; their stability indicates the constant regenera-
tion of acetaldehyde. Hence, the conclusion was drawn
that metabolic processes occur on the surface of Mars;
hydrocarbons are oxidized to aldehydes and alcohols
just as they are on Earth where such processes are
catalyzed by enzymes.
The assumption that the source of the bands is of
a biological nature should be judged critically. A num-
ber of authors believe that organic compounds appear
84
on the surface of Mars as the result of various syntheses
occurring in the atmosphere of the planet under the
action of ultraviolet rays. In order to check this hypo-
thesis, they decided to carry out experiments in the
laboratory simulating the conditions under which
acetaldehyde would be exposed to radiation on Mars.
250 ~l (microlitres) of acetaldehyde containing
a certain quantity of the 14C isotope were placed in
a quartz tube which was then sealed, cooled in lique-
fied nitrogen and exposed to ultraviolet rays during
24 hours. After that, the tube was opened and various
sugar-carriers (glucose, ribose and others) were added.
The introduction of labelled (radioactive) carbon facil-
itated the analysis of the reaction products obtained in
very small concentrations, of course. The analysis was
conducted by means of chromatographic separation.
The reaction products were distributed on a sheet of
paper for chromatographic analysis and were detec-
ted, after appropriate treatment, by radiation from
the radioactive isotope. The radiation was recorded
with the aid of a photographic film on which the sheets
of paper containing the reaction products were placed.
This tracer technique is called autoradiography. It is
a very sensitive method because the rays act on the
film during a long period of time. In the tests carried
out by Ponamperuma the paper remained in contact
with the film during three weeks. The non-radioactive
carriers can he fixed on the paper with the aid of spe-
cial reagents.
If acetaldehyde were converted into any carbohy-
drate, the carbohydrate would be radioactive and by its
location on the paper (recorded on the autoradiograph)
the particular hydrocarbon could be determined at
once (each of the sugar-carriers has its own absorption
zone on the paper). Test results showed that the expo-
sure of acetaldehyde to ultraviolet rays gives rise

S~
to the formation of ribose, desoxyribose and some other
carbohydrates.
Subsequently, a chamber was constructed in which
the investigators simulated the surface of Mars. The
chamber contained limonite sand (model Martian soil
containing a large amount of iron oxides). The tempe-
rature in it was varied from -70 to + 30°C; a pres-
sure of about 65 mbar was maintained in it; the "atmo-
sphere" in the chamber was composed of 65 per cent
CO 2 , 33 per cent N2 , 2 per cent acetaldehyde and
a very small quantity of water. During the day the
chamber was exposed to radiation from three ultra-
violet l~mps emitting rays, chiefly of a wavelength
of 2537A.
The limonite samples were periodically taken out
of the chamber and analyzed. The tests showed that
pentoses, hexoses and polysacchoroses were formed in
the chamber. It is still necessary to solve the riddle:
where did the initial acetaldehyde come from on Mars?
By means of special tests, scientists have ascertai-
ned that acetaldehyde can be obtained (it is true, in
very small quantities) as a product of the photochem-
ical reaction between water vapours and carbon dio-
xide under conditions corresponding to those in the
atmosphere of Mars.
There is, however, evidence that the formation of
acetaldehyde occurs in the dark regions of Mars. This
is hard to explain and it is possible that the synthesis
of acetaldehyde is associated with the activity of
vegetation. Thus, indirectly, both the simulated expe-
riments and observations confirm the possibility of
the existence of some forms of life on Mars.
Mars is the last of the inner planets. In far-distant
space there is Jupiter at a distance of about 780 mil-
lion km from the Sun; still farther, the planets Saturn,
Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, They resemble each other,
 but to our regret, our information about their nature
is very inadequate.
The spectral analysis of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus
and Neptune has shown that in their atmospheres
intense absorption of light is observed in the yellow
red and infrared parts of the spectrum, absorptio~
increasing from Jupiter to Neptune. Uranus and Nep-
tune seem to be yellow-green even when observed in
a telescope; the red and infrared regions of the spectrum
are "filtered out", to a large measure, by the planets'
atmospheres. What molecules are present in the atmo-
spheres of these giant planets? The study of Saturn
has shown that there are no puzzling absorption bands
in the spectrum of its ring. Hence, absorption takes
place in the atmosphere and its cause is the presence
of some gaseous substance. Under Earth conditions
no substance gave such bands, and it took more than
half a century to solve the puzzle of the mysterious
marks in the absorption spectrum. The problem was
cleared up only in 1932 when as the result of theoreti-
cal and experimental investigations it was established
that the absorption bands pertained to methane and
ammonia. Both methane and ammonia are well known
but the above-mentioned bands are observed in the
spectrum of these gases only under the condition that
light travels a very long way in the gas. In 1935
Edel and Slipher showed that the .intensity of the
absorption bands characteristic of Jupiter and Saturn
(to be more exact, the intensity intermediate between
~hat of the bands of Saturn and Jupiter) is attained
when a ray of light passes through a column of methane
14 m long at a pressure of 40 atm.
Ammonia was found only in Jupiter and Saturn;
it was not found in the spectra of Uranus and Neptune.
It is supposed that due to the low temperatures on
these planets ammonia is in the solid (frozen) state.

87
 Investigation of the infrared part of the spectrum
of the giant planets revealed the presence of hydrogen
(and also deuterium) in Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and
Neptune (undoubtedly there is helium as well).
Jupiter, surrounded by satellites, is very beautiful
when observed in a telescope. Coloured cloudy streaks
and spots are visible on its surface; since the planet
rotates quickly on its axis it is flattened at the poles
and bulges at the equator. Jupiter has constantly attrac-
ted the attention of astronomers but it is hard to
find another celestial body near us that has been the
object of more controversy than this strange
planet.
The assumption that Jupiter resembles the Earth
was quickly rejected. Neither were the early theories
in which Jupiter was regarded as a burning hot body
confired. In their place came the views according to
which Jupiter is an enormous and very cold mass con-
sisting of a small hard core surrounded by a layer of
ice and a very thick atmosphere with clouds of solid
carbon dioxide. However, when in 1952 Jupiter passed
in front of the star a-Aquila, investigation showed that
light gases, mainly hydrogen and helium, predominate
in the atmosphere of the planet.
It was even questioned whether, in general, Jupi-
ter could be regarded as a planet. Indeed, judging
by certain features, this giant rather suggested a star.
The composition of the gases surrounding it is close
to that of gases surrounding the Sun. I t is just possible
that Jupiter is a "miscarried" Sun. The fact that it is
smaller in size than the Sun is the reason why the
mass of the planet on condensing did not become
hot as the Sun did'.

1 Below, the influence of the size of a star on its fate will

be discussed in detail.

88
 Each year theoretical and experimental investiga-
tion of this planet;s being carried out on a larger scale.
Above, mention has already been made of the theoret-
ical calculations of the composition of atmospheres
in which the authors proceeded from the assumption
of chemical equilibrium in the atmosphere. Calcula-
tions made for Jupiter were checked by experiments
simulating the conditions which exist on the planet.
It was of particular importance to ascertain whether
organic compounds could exist on Jupiter. This sup-
position was fully confirmed. A mixture of methane
and ammonia was exposed to a corona discharge as
a result of which acetylene, ethylene, ethane, hydrogen
cyanide and methyl cyanide were obtained.
States of equilibrium correspond to the presence in
the upper layers of clouds of hydrogen 0.60 parts by
volume; inert gases, 0.39; methane, 0.005; ammonia,
0.0002; water, 10- 6 • At great depths at a pressure of
1000 atm and a temperature of 350 oK, the water
content increases approximately 100 times; the con-
tent of the other constituents remains unchanged.
According to other data the composition of Jupiter's
atmosphere is as follows: 60 per cent hydrogen, 36 per
cent helium, 3 per cent neon, 1 per cent methane,
1 per cent ammonia. As can be seen from this data,
hydrogen and helium predominate in the atmosphere
of Jupiter, while there is comparatively little methane
and ammonia.
Of interest are the calculations and results of
tests, carried out in a simulated Jupiter atmosphere,
concerning high-molecular compounds. It was found
that complex molecules of high-molecular mass tend
to form even under the conditions prevalent on Jupiter.
Some of the high-molecular compounds in a plasma
discharge in the simulated atmosphere are coloured
(pyrene, coronene), some are fluorescent (chrysene).
89
The bright colouring of the zones and spots in the
atmosphere of Jupiter is probably associated with
the formation of organic molecules.
The dense and very thick atmospheres of Jupiter,
Saturn, Uranus and Neptune also contain hydrogen
cyanide, nitrogen peroxide, N0 2 , in the form of N 20 4 ,
water, and, perhaps, hydrogen sulphide. It is possible
that the clouds on Jupiter consist of solid crystalline
ammonia or its compounds with other substances.
The temperature of Jupiter's atmosphere is equal to
about 102°K and varies peculiarly with height. Above
the layer of heavy clouds the temperature is about
1100 K but it grows as the distance from the planet
increases, then it falls and increases once more. At
a height where the density is equal to 1012 molecules/em",
the temperature is 300 o K ; below that at a density of
oK.
101~ molecules/em", it is only 150 The temperature
of Saturn is equal to about 120oK.
On discussing this variation in temperature and
comparing the properties of the gases found on Jupiter
it has been assumed by a number of scientists that the
inner parts of the planet have a very high temperature
(of several thousand degrees). The energy required to
maintain this temperature is evolved during radioactive
decay. Above the heated zone there is something like
a shell composed of oxides of metals, and still higher
is the cold zone.
There is another hypothesis developed by V. Fesen-
kov, A. Masevich , V. Markus, and V. Ramsey, which,
although at first sight may seem improbable, is physic-
ally well-founded and has many supporters. As is
well known, at very high pressures the electron shells
of atoms overlap and even substances that do not
have metallic properties under ordinary conditions
come to resemble metals. The pressure in the inner
regions of Jupiter, according to available data, must
be great. It is supposed that it reaches 2 million atm
at a depth of the order of 1/5 of the distance between
the top of the clouds and the centre of the planet.
Hydrogen and helium at such degrees of condensation
pass over to a metallic state.
In the central part of the core of the planet the
pressure increases to 40-100 million atm 1. The gas
mixture acquires the properties of a solid body. Metal-
lic hydrogen under these conditions has a density
6 times greater than that of water; and helium, almost
13 times that of water. The temperature of the core
of Jupiter is measured in thousands of degrees. In the
region that is at a distance of 54,000-60,000 km from
the centre of the planet, at a pressure from 1,000,000
to 200,000 atm, hydrogen and helium are in the liquid
state; and finally, still higher (70,000 km from the
centre) is the gaseous layer. In the outer region where
the pressure is only 1 atm, the temperature is about
107°C.
It has been proved that the atmosphere of Jupiter
is in constant motion and is stirred by powerful currents
not only in the horizontal direction but in the vertical
one as well. It would not be easy for future space travel-
lers if they took the risk of plunging into the atmos-
phere of Jupiter in windy weather. The velocity of the
wind there attains a value of 500 km/h and constant
storms scatter cold clouds of ammonia allover the
gloomy planet. There is a mysterious red spot floating
in Jupiter's atmosphere: it is the Great Red Spot
having a period of rotation about its axis of about
10 h (Fig. 17). Once every two years (on the average)
this "spot" meets with a region occupied by an atmo-

1 40 million atm in the "hot" model of Jupiter and 100

million atm in the "cold" model.
spheric disturbance (the South Tropical Disturbance)
of the nature of which nothing is known as yet. Several
hypotheses have been suggested concerning the nature

Fig. 17. Jupiter; in the upper left-hand corner is the Great

Red Spot

of the Great Red Spot. The investigations and calcula-

tions of V. Trubitsyn have shown that the Red Spot
is a vast whirlwind that developed in Jupiter's atmos-
phere. The duration of the existence of this turbulent
motion is very great (presumably of the order of a mil-
lion years); observations conducted from the Earth
are going on for 300 years, and during this relatively
92
short period of time no noticeable changes in the state
of the turbulence have occurred.
One of the puzzling features of this strange planet
is the vigorous emission of radio waves. Jupiter emits
radio waves ranging from centimetres and decimetres
to decametres. These emissions of astonishing intensity
are associated with mysterious phenomena in the atmo-
sphere and indicate violent explosive processes in
Jupiter's upper layers.
 CI-IAPTER III

Scope of Earth and Space

Chemistry
1. GENERAL

In the preceding chapter we came to the very im-

portant conclusion that the chemical elements on the
Earth and those in outer space are identical. The
same laws govern the chemical reactions in a test
tube, a plant reactor or in unbounded space containing
billions of galaxies! This justifies the next step -
the attempt to ascertain what chemical processes
actually take place in outer space. To solve this probleIl\..
it is imperative to know the conditions characteristic
of the planets, stars and the interstellar medium.
Let us assume that the researcher mentally leaves
the Earth and is carried away into space. He will
encounter, first of all, an extremely rarified medium
containing only tens of atoms in 1 em",
N ear the large celestial bodies the number of atoms
is greater, of course; but still, on the average, it is
very small. Beyond the solar system the space travel-
ler can come across a small hut very dense star of the
class of dwarfs. He will be very glad that he is tra-
velling only in his imagination! The stellar matter is
so greatly condensed that the gravitational forces reach
an amazing value: 1 em" of stellar matter weighs about
8 tons! If a man actually found himself on the surface
of a dwarf, he would immediately be crushed by his
own weight.
At the present time there is data available that
indicates that this density is not the limit; there are
94
stars with a greater density, even millions of times
as groat.
Let -us avoid, for the time being, these dangerous
celestial bodies and direct our traveller to the very
large and luminous stars, the red giants. The density
of these stars is very low, only 1.6 X 10 g/cm", i.e.,
about a thousand times less than that of air in our
Earth!
Thus, in the world of stars the density varies vast-
ly: from almost complete vacuum to such enormous
magnitudes as have never been investigated under
Earth conditions. Hence, it is necessary to study the
behaviour of matter and the peculiarities of space
reactions in vacuum and at very high pressures, other-
wise it will not be possible to understand the chemical
and physical processes in outer space.
But that, by far, is not all. The traveller would na-
turally have some measuring instruments with him,
in particular a thermometer. \Ve shall not try to guess
just how the thermometer is designed but like the
voyage itself, it is an imaginary one and therefore
without any faults: the range of temperatures which
it can measure varies from absolute zero to hundreds
of millions of degrees (in fact, now there are methods
for measuring such high temperatures so that such
data can be actually obtainable and not mere fantasy;
the instruments used, however, do not resemble ordi-
nary thermometers). In the interstellar medium the
thermometer will show its own temperature - it will
absorb radiation from the Sun or any other star! and

1 In boundless outer space streams of radiation from many

billions of stars intersect, but of special interest is radiation of
a wavelength of 0.1 em (Urelict" radiation). We'll speak of it
once more at the end of the book. This radiation carries an ener-
gy corresponding to a temperature of about 3-4°K. I ts appea-
rance is associated with the origin of the universe.

95
 give energy to the atoms in the interstellar medium.
When equilibrium is reached, i.e., when the amount
of absorbed energy and that released per unit time are
equal, the temperature of the thermometer will be
constant; it will depend on the physical properties of
the material the thermometer is made of.
As we already know, the temperature of the outer
layers of the Sun is equal to about 6000 DC, while the
temperature in the Sun's interior reaches up to 15 mil-
lion degrees; these conditions have been obtained on
the Earth only recently and only for a very short pe-
riod of time.
In the Galaxy the traveller would encounter vari\
ous types of stars, among them the blue giants in the
interiors of which the temperature is 1090K. Very
little is known about the state of matter under such
conditions, and the program of space chemistry rese-
arch must include the study of substances and their
reactions at very high temperatures, right up to bil-
lions of degreesl
The measurement of density and temperature does
not' exhaust the possibilities of physics. Let us supply
the traveller with instruments for investigating the
nature of the radiation and the strength of the magnetic
and electric fields; guarantee him eternal life. Then he
will find out that outer space is permeated by streams
of radiation containing elementary particles and elec-
tromagnetic waves of various length; he will learn
that powerful magnetic fields arise and move in space
and that sometimes explosions of extraordinary strength
occur there - mysterious flares after which new
atoms appear, especially atoms of heavy elements. He
will notice that in outer space hydrogen and helium
atoms are distributed everywhere and will probably
draw the conclusion that the life, evolution and explo-
sions of stars are closely connected with the origin of
96
atoms of the elements and their conversion to each
other, i.e., with nuclear reactions. It follows from
this that in order to understand the fundamentals of
space chemistry it is necessary to study the effect of
pressure, temperature and radiation on matter and to
ascertain the possibility of the occurrence not only of
ordinary reactions but of nuclear reactions as well.
Let us begin the study of the fundamentals of space
chemistry with a discussion of the influence of high
pressures and temperatures on matter.

2. WHAT HAPPENS TO MATTER AT HIGH PRESSURE

Let us ascertain the effect of a gradual increase in
pressure, assuming that the initial state of matter was
gaseous. As long as the gas is rarified (at a pressure of
the order of 1 atm or less), in accordance with Boyle's
law, at a constant temperature the volume of a gas
varies inversely with its pressure. Then at a pressure
of the order of tens and hundreds of atmospheres the
effect of the volume of the molecules themselves is
distinctly manifested, and the volume of the gas
decreases a smaller number of times than the pressure
increases. Let us assume that the temperature of the gas
is below the critical one, then "at a definite pressure
the gas will begin to condensate to a liquid. If the
temperature is higher than the critical one, the gas
will remain in the gaseous state but its density
and viscosity will grow steadily as the pressure
increases.
Let us increase the pressure to thousands and tens
of thousands of atmospheres (at the present time, high-
pressure techniques make it possible to obtain pressu-
res of hundreds of thousands of atmospheres). Such
high pressures bring the atoms in solid bodies closer to
each other and cause rearrangement of their crystal
7-01266 97
 lattice. Thus, graphite at high pressures is converted
to diamond; silicon dioxide is converted to a very
dense- variety of Si0 2 ; boron nitride changes its struc-
ture and is converted from the hexagonal form to the
cubic one of extreme hardness (borazon); new varieties
of quartz appear, which retain their acquired structure
even after the pressure is removed (L. Vereshchagin,
S. Stishov and S. Popova), etc. High pressure produces,
moreover, another very interesting effect. It makes
the electron shells of atoms react with one another so
that the atoms in a crystal will come to have common
valence electrons. This, as is well known, is characteri-
stic of the structure of metals. Hence, extreme comp-
ression of matter results in the appearance of metallic
properties in it. As a matter of fact phosphorus, for
instance, at very high pressures displays high electrical
conductivity; at first it resembles a semiconductor and
then a metal (black phosphorus).
H. Drickamer believes that when the initial volume
of solid bodies is reduced by 50 per cent, they become
metallic. He claims that such metallization of certain
simple substances corresponds to a pressure of the order
of hundreds of thousands of atmospheres (135,000 atmo-
spheres for selenium; 250,000 for iodine; 400,000 for
sulphur).
Hundreds of thousands of atmospheres, however, are
not so much for celestial bodies. What happens if the
atoms are under conditions when the pressure reaches
many millions of atmospheres? At a high pressure even
the density of hydrogen, which under normal conditi-
ons is equal to 9 X 10-5 , is increased hundreds of
thousands of times and becomes equal to 6 (at 40 mil-
lion atmospheres).
Theoretical analysis shows that at pressures of
hundreds of millions of atmospheres the nuclei and
electrons must begin to react with each other. With
98
very high degrees of compression the protons and
electrons unite to form neutrons. The existence of stars
whose density exceeds that of the white dwarfs millions
of times was predicted by V Ambartsumyan and
G. Saakyan who supposed that the explosions of such
neutron stars initiated the process of formation of new
stars. In 1958, in the observatory at Mount Palomar
a photograph was obtained of an explosion of a neut-
ron star, which proved the validity of the assumption
made by Ambartsumyan and Saakyan. With even grea-
ter compression, the density reaches a magnitude of the
order of 1015 g/cm",
Thus, the density of matter in outer space can vary
from 10-22 (and even less) to 1015 g/cm", With such
a tremendous increase in pressure, simple processes
in which gas molecules unite pass over to complex nucle-
ar and nucleon reactions.
From Boyle's elementary law that is known to eve-
ry schoolboy and schoolgirl we must turn to the theory
of interaction of elementary particles - one of the
most difficult branches of modern physics in which
there is much that is not clear as yet.
Perhaps, rather than the magnitudes of the physi..
cal values (the vast distances, high temperatures, etc.),
it is the wide scope in which these values vary that
makes the greatest impression on those who study the
conditions in outer space.
On passing to the influence of temperature on reac-
tions in space, we'll once more be convinced of the
signifi cance of this scope for the character of the physico-
chemical processes which occur there and see that an
increase in the temperature of celestial bodies also
results in a transition from ordinary chemical reac-
tions between molecules and atoms to nuclear pro-
cesses.

7* 99
 3. WHAT HAPPENS TO MATTER
AT HIGH TEl\IPERATURES
Let us assume that the initial temperature is very
low. Nothing hinders us from taking it to be absolute
zero; it is physically impossible to obtain a temperature
equal to exactly absolute zero, but in speciallaborato-
ries it is already possible to attain temperatures that
differ from absolute zero only by hundredths of a deg-
ree. At such temperatures the energy in bodies is
close to the minimum one; the electrons are at the
very lowest energy levels; their anergy and the energy of
the body as a whole, although not equal to zero, are
of the smallest possible value. Heating of the body
leads to an increase in the energy of atomic vibration.
As a result of the distribution of the kinetic energy
among the vibrating particles in solids or the molecules
of gases, surplus energy is imparted to some of the
particles for a short period of time, and they become
more chemically active. This process is of very great
significance because it is due to it that the temperature
influences the rate of a chemical reaction. S. Arrheni-
us, as is known, suppposed that a chemical reaction
between two molecules can proceed only if the colli-
ding molecules have an energy that exceeds the average
value of the energy of collision. The surplus energy
is called the energy of activation; it determines to
a great extent the rate of reaction. If the activation
energy is equal to zero, any impact results in a chemi-
cal change and the reaction proceeds quickly. Thus,
for example, when H+ ions collide with OH- ions, i.e.,
in neutralization, electrostatic attraction adds the
necessary energy, and neutralization takes place instan-
taneously. The greater the energy of activation, the
slower the chemical change proceeds.
For most reactions, it is necessary to add from 30
to 50 kcal per 1 mole of substance for the reaction to
-100
proceed. Catalyzers accelerate a chemical reaction, as
a rule, bpcause they reduce the activation energy by
causing [the process to proceed in a different way.
Indeed, whereas, for instance, the process _4 - B
requires a high energy of activation and therefore pro-
ceeds slowly, processes carried out with a catalyzer,
i.e., involving the chemical changes:
+
A C = M (intermediate substance)
M=B+C
are generally other reactions that are characterized by
smaller activation energies. Some catalyzers reduce the
activation energy to 10-15 kcal/mole; enzymes even
to 1.5-5 kcal/mole.
If it be taken into account that in the mathemati-
cal expression of the dependence of the rate-of-reaction
constant k on the energy of activation E, the latter
is in the exponent:
k = koe- E / RT
where k o = a constant
e = base of the natural logarithms
R = gas constant
T == absolute temperature
it is not difficult to realize that even a small change
in the activation energy strongly affects the rate of
reaction.
I t is worthwhile to glance at the equation once mo-
re. If we look at the exponent, we'll note that formal-
ly an increase in the temperature (T) has the same
effect as a decrease in the activation energy (E). Prac-
tically, however, it is frequently better to lower the
activation energy (for example, with the aid of a cata-
lyzer) than to heat the substance. On heating a sub-
stance strongly various secondary reactions (which do
not occur at lower temperatures because of the high
activation energy) can take place simultaneously.
t-ot
7092
 When we pass over to temperatures characteristic
of stars, reactions with very high E values can take
place. On the other hand, high temperatures favour
a shift of the equilibrium in the direction of the for-
mation of endothermic products. If the reaction for
the formation of titanium dioxide is accompanied by the
release of energy:
Ti+ O2 == Ti0 2+ 292 kcal
it is obvious that the reverse reaction will be accompa-
nied by the absorption of heat; therefore the shift in
equilibrium to the left is possible only on condition
that the compound is strongly heated. With stellar
temperatures the dissociation of even very stable com-
pounds such as the oxides of metals can be expected.
There is another class of compounds that can be
found under the conditions of outer space - these are
also unstable and active forms of matter resulting from
the action of high temperatures or radiation, i.e., free
radicals. Radicals are atoms or groups of atoms conta-
ining unpaired electrons. Thus, for example, the hydro-
gen atom and sodium atom are radicals. The oxygen
atom even has two unpaired electrons and belongs to
the class of biradicals.
The presence of unpaired electrons (usually desig-
nated by a dot over the formula of the radical: H, CI,
OR) is the reason for high chemical activity: the radi-
cal strives to gain the second, missing electron. On
acquiring the second electron, a more stable distribu-
tion of electrons (a more stable configuration) is
attained.
That is why two atoms of hydrogen combine to
form a molecule H 2 (H : II), the CI radical unites
with a Na radical to produce sodium chloride, NaCl
(Na Cl), etc.
102
 Such radicals react readily and therefore exist in
the free state only for a very short time, often only
fractions of a second. Complex radicals consisting of
several atoms live longer. Some of them can exist in
the free state for an indefinitely long time. When solid
bodies are cooled to very low temperat.ures even
active radicals can be frozen in them. The core of
comets consists of solid masses of substances, in parti-
cular water, containing various radicals in the frozen
state. On the other hand, such radicals as CR a, C 2 , CH,
CH 2 are present in gases at high temperatures. These
are the blocks from which, on cooling, more complex
molecules can be formed. Perhaps the first stages in
the chemical evolution on our Earth consisted in vari-
ous transformations of radicals. The activation energy
of such reactions is not very great and sometimes is
practically equal to zero. Such reactions, therefore,
proceed rapidly.
'"
4. PLASMA STATE OF MATTER

If a substance is heated until its temperature rea-

ches hundreds and thousands of degrees, a process of
intense ionization ensues. The atoms lose their outer
electrons, and the mixture of ions and electrons is
formed, which is known in physics as plasma. The
temperature of plasma is not expressed in degrees but,
preferably, in electron volts, i.e., in units of energy
since energy is proportional to temperature. 1 eV cor-
responds to a temperature of 11, 6000 C.~Hot plasma has
a temperature of hundreds of electron volts (millions
of degrees). Plasma possesses peculiar properties. It
cannot be kept in any vessel because all materials
disintegrate and are ionized at such high temperatures
hut it can be retained by a magnetic field. The motion
103
 of plasma particles depends considerably on the
magnetic field acting on the plasma; the particles
rotate around the magnetic lines of force and, con-
sequently, the field can cause powerful currents to
arise within the plasma.
The plasma state is one of the most unstable states
of matter. It is extremely difficult to retain plasma in
a steady state to study its properties; to retain stable
plasma during hundredths of a second is considered
a major achievement. Soviet scientists obtained plasma
with a temperature of about 40 million degrees and
retained it in their apparatus for hundredths of a second,
attaining a density of 1010 particles per 1 em",
Plasma is a so-called quasi-neutral medium. In
plasma the positive and negative charges are distribu-
ted in such a way that considerable separation of char-
ges will not occur in space. If this could happen, great
forces would arise striving to equalize the average
concentration of positive and negative charges.
Small fluctuations in the concentration of positive
and negative charges, however, are possible. As soon
as positive and negative charges are separated, some-
thing like a capacitor with oppositively charged plates
appears. There is an electric field between the plates,
and themotion of an electron in it is accelerated. The
accelerated motion of a charge gives rise to electro-
magnetic oscillations. It can also be said that the
separation of charges in plasma leads to fluctuation in
charge density. This is called plasma fluctuation; it
is an important characteristic of plasma. Other kinds
of fluctuation of plasma are possible, but the one des-
crihed above is the simplest of all.
Plasma is capable of emitting electrom-agnetic
waves. The Sun's red-hot mass is hydrogen-helium
plasma and radiates waves of different lengths: from
very long waves (in the region of radio waves) to very
t04
 short ones", Lately, important data has been obtained
on the X-ray radiation of the Sun, stars and planets
(e. g., Jupiter). Plasma is the basic form of existence
of the great masses of matter in outer space. In hot
plasma special reactions take place - it is the sphere
of nuclear chemistry. At a temperature of a million
degrees molecules cannot exist, whereas atomic
nuclei acquire such a high energy that on colliding
with each other, they can produce new nuclei. Under
conditions prevalent in hot plasma the conversion of
elements to different ones is quite possible.
Evidence that the nuclei of certain atoms are capa-
ble of disintegrating and liberating enormous amounts
of energy was obtained in the laboratories of A. Becqu-
erel and P. and M. Curie, where the scientists encoun-
tered the phenomenon of radioactivity for the first
time. Later, methods were found by which nuclei
could be made to interact and change their charge and
mass, i.e., to convert an element into another one!
It was found that the sum of the masses of the origi-
nal nuclei was generally not equal to the sum of the
masses of the nuclei resulting from the reaction. If
the sum of the masses of the initial particles is greater,
energy is released in an amount equal to E = d mc2
where Sm. is the change in mass and c is the velocity
of light. The energy effect of nuclear reactions is
great; it exceeds the effect of ordinary chemical reac-
tions millions of times.
It can be stated with certainty that space chemist-
ry is basically nuclear chemistry. Calculations show

1 Investigations of the Sun's short-wave and X-ray radi-

ation became possible after instruments could be lifted to the
upper layers of the Earth's atmosphere with the aid of special
rockets. At the present time it has been proved that heavy
ionized atoms, in particular iron ions, are the source of solar
X-ray radiation.

105
that no ordinary chemical reactions can give so much
energy as, for example, is needed to maintain the tem-
parature of our Sun. But the Sun is only one of many
stars. The problems concerning the Sun are the general
problems of stellar physics and chemistry - compara-
tively new branches of knowledge, the future develop-
ment of which is veritably limitless.
 CHAPTER IV

The World of Stars

1. BRIGHTNESS AND LUMINOSITY OF STARS

The stars are not spread evenly throughout the

universe. They are bunched together in galaxies; the
latter, however, are scattered in space rather uniformly.
There are billions of stars in the Earth's galaxy
and the number of galaxies is just as large. The visible
part of the heavens contains 1021 stars (according to
Korkiss). Light from the nearest stars travels for seve-
ral years to reach the Earth (about 4.2 years from
our nearest neighbour: Alpha Centauri). It is very dif-
ficult to measure stellar distances. I t is necessary to
make assumptions that astronomers do not believe to
be well-grounded. Thus, it is assumed that for each
star type (variable stars or Cepheid variables; blue
stars or the blue "giants) brightness depends only on
distance and knowing the distance to one of them the
distance to another one farther away is calculated by
the decrease in brightness.
If, mentally, the stars were placed at the same
distance (in stellar astronomy the standard distance is
taken to be equal to 10 parsecs), then brightness can
serve as a comparative characteristic of stars. The
brightness at the standard distance is the absolute mag-
nitude of a star. The total radiant energy emitted by
a star per unit time is called luminosity; this characte-
ristic gives more information about the state of a star
t07
than brightness does. Generally. the unit of luminosity
is the luminosity of the Sun. The range in which lumi-
nosity varies is very large - from hundreds of thou-
sands of "luminosities of the Sun" (supergiants) to
thousandth parts of this unit (dwarfs).
Table 6
Characteristics of Certain Stars (According to Gavrusevich)

Energy emit-
Pressure, a tm Temperature, ted, el'g/g
star (in centre) °C (in centre) per s (lumi..
nosity)

Sun 10t t 19.106 2

Sirius 1011 26.10 6 30
Capella 8·10'7 6.10 6 50
u-Standard-bearer 3.1010 25.10 6 180
y-Cygnus 3·10 tO 32.10 6 1200

2. THE HERTZSPRUNG-RUSSELL (HR) DIAGRAM

AND STELLAR EVOLUTION
Stars are not eternal, and the universe is not static
as one might suppose when looking at the sky on a cle-
ar evening. It appears to be so permanent and invariab-
le: the twinkling of the stars seems to say that thousan-
ds of years ago everything was the same as now and/
will remain the same when new thousands of years will
pass. As a matter of fact the case is somewhat diffe-
rent. Though it is true that a hundred, a thousand and
even a million years is a very short time on a cosmic
and stellar scale, still stars do change in the course of
time.. They are born, live; when they are young, the
processes in the star's interior proceed intensively;
t·08'
then they begin to degenerate and finally die; someti-
mes after dying, they explode which is the beginning
of a new stage in the conversion of the stellar matter.
Relatively high temperatures and low densities
are characteristic of young stars. Towards the end of
its life a star becomes smaller in size and its density
increases until it becomes a very dim white dwarf.
Stars differ in surface temperature. In stellar classi-
fication stars are denoted by the letters 0, B, A, F,
0
G, K, M. A surface temperature of 50, 000 C is charac-
teristic of class 0; a temperature of about 28, 000° C, of
class .B; class A has a temperature of 10, 000 DC; class F,
7700° C; class G (specifically, our Sun), about 6000° C;
class K, 5000° C and class M, 3800° C.
I t has been proved by a large number of observations
that there is a direct relationship between the lumino-
sity, and accordingly the absolute magnitude of a star,
and its spectral class. Since the class of a star also
corresponds to a definite temperature, the latter is
likewise plotted on the diagram in order to show this
dependence. Figure 18 presents a diagram plotted on
the basis of the study of the states of a very great num-
ber of stars. The diagram was proposed by E. Hertz-
sprung in 1907 and, independently, by H. Russell in
1914. •
E. Hertzsprung and H. Russell discovered that for
stars of a given type an increase in mass is accompanied
by an increase in luminosity. Hence, on the diagram in
the upper right-hand corner are points showing the
state of stars of enormous mass, high luminosity but
relatively low surface temperature. These are the
giants; they are subdivided into supergiants, giants
and subgiants. Along the diagonal and in the lower
left-hand corner, respectively, appearthe subdwarfs and
white dwarfs (the latter will be discussed below); their
mass is smaller than that of the Sun. The majority of
109
 Temperature, d"J(
25000 11000 7600 6000 4000 2000

-5*

0
~
~
~
'....,
~
t1
~
~
~
......., +5
~
~

+10

+1.

o B A F B K n
Spectral class
Fig. 18. The Hertzsprung-Russell diagram
points, i.e .., the greatest number of stars, fallon a stra-
ight line that runs diagonally across the diagram from
upper left to lower right and is called the main sequen-
ce. Our Sun appears in the central part of the main seque-
nce; the very hot, highly luminous stars appear at the
upper left, small relatively cold and dim stars appear
toward the lower right.
A remarkable feature of the HR diagram is that
one can trace the entire life history of a star on it, from
its birth to the final stage in its evolution. The stars
in the course of their life appear to move along the
main sequence from left to right. Moreover, we learn
that each new stage in the evolution of a star corres-
ponds to chemical changes in its composition, which
in fact, are the reasons for its appearance: the dia-
gram illustrates the relationship between the chemi-
cal conversions and the stages in the development of
stars.
Stars from their birth to their death or explosion
pass through stages which are reflected in this diagram
to a greater or smaller degree. I t all begins with the
condensation of a cloud of gas and dust and the for-
mation of starry nuclei that are denser than the sur-
rounding medium. This stage is observed in galactic
systems. Then gravitational forces compress the star.
The stellar matter is heated and begins to radiate light.
These processes correspond to the motion of stars on
the HR diagram from the right to the left. The star
takes its place on the main sequence.
Stars of different mass' appear on the main sequence
at different points. If a star has a large mass, it will
be heated to a very high temperature earlier than equi-
librium between the gravitational forces and the radia-
tion pressure is reached. Such a very hot star will appear
on the main sequence nearer to the upper left than
stars with a smaller mass. It takes millions of years
111
for a star to approach the main sequence, and it rema-
ins on it for billions of years.
Finally, the star exhausts all the nuclear fuel in its
interior where the temperature is the highest and where
matter is constantly mixed (the zone of convection).
The radiation zone surrounds the convection zone;
here energy is transported by radiation. The radiation
zone passes to the outer zone through which energy is
dispersed into the surrounding space.
It is supposed that having exhausted their fuel, the
stars begin to contract again as a result of which the
temperature at the edge of the radiation zone grows.
When it reaches millions of degrees, nuclear reactions
occur not in the nucleus but in the radiation zone. The
star expands and its outer layers gradually cool off. As
a result a huge tenous mass of gas of a relatively low
temperature appears, and the red giant takes its place
in the upper right-hand corner of the diagram. The
further evolution of these giants with a very.large mass
exceeding that of the Sun can proceed in different ways
that are not indicated on the Hfl diagram.

3. CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF ST~RS

As the temperature rises, the particles capable of

existing in the stellar atmosphere are reduced to sim-
pler ones. The spectral analysis of stars in classes 0,
B, A (having a temperature from 50, 000 to 10, 000° C)
shows the lines of ionized hydrogen and helium and
ions of metals in their atmospheres; in class K (5000° C)
radicals already appear; and in class M (3800° C) even
molecules of oxides.
Table 7 gives in greater detail the amounts of indi-
vidual elements found in class B stars.
The figures given in Table 7 are relative ones. This
means, for example, that in the star ,,-Pegasus for
112
 Table 7
Chemical Composition of Stars in Class B
-
Relative number of atoms in star
Element
r-Scorpto
I ~-Perseus
I ,,-Pegasus

Hydrogen 8530 8300 8700

Helium 1450 1700 1290
Carbon 2.0 1.5 3.3
Nitrogen 3.1 1.7 0.9
Oxygen 11.0 9.0 3.7
Fluorine - - 0.028
Neon 4.5 3.4 4.65
Magnesium 0.46 0.49 0.76
Aluminium 0.032 0.05 0.005
Silicon 0.75 0.77 0.094
Phosphorus - - 0.0028
Sulphur - 0.25 0.55
Chlorine 0.014
Argon - 0.07

every 8700 hydrogen atoms there are 1290 helium atoms,

0.9 nitrogen atom, etc.
Hydrogen and helium lines predominate in the
spectrum of stars of the first four classes; but as the
temperature falls there appear lines of other elements
and even lines which indicgte the existence of compou-
nds. These are rather simple compounds, such as the
oxides of zirconium and titanium (class M) as well as
the radicals CH, OR, NH, CH 2 , C 2 , C 3 , CaI-I, and
others. The outer layers of stars consist mainly of
hydrogen; on an average, for every 10, 000 hydrogen
atoms there are about 1000 helium atoms, 5 oxygen
atoms and less than 1 atom of other elements.

8-01266 113
 There are stars which have a high content of. par-
ticular elements. Thus, there are stars which have
a relatively high silicon content (silicon stars); stars
that have a high iron content (iron stars); a high manga-
nese content (manganese stars); a high carbon content
(carbon stars), etc. Stars with an anomalous composi-
tion are quite varied. A high content of heavy ele-
ments has been detected in young stars of the type of
red giants. It was found in one of them that the content
of molybdenum exceeded the content of this metal in
the Sun 26 times. In general, the content of elements
whose atoms have a mass greater than the mass of the
helium atom gradually decreases as the star grows ol-
der. Moreover, the chemical composition of a star
depends on the location of the star in the Galaxy. In
old stars in the spherical part of the Galaxy, there are
few atoms of heavy elements, while in the part which
forms the spiral arms of the Galaxy and in its flat
part there are stars that have a relatively high content
of heavy elements. It is in these regions that new
stars are born and that is why the presence of heavy
elements can be associated with the cfemical evolu-
tion characteristic of the life of a star.
The chemical composition of a star depends on two
factors: the nature of the interstellar medium and the
nuclear reactions which occur in a star during its life
history. The initial composition of a star is close to
the composition of the interstellar matter, i.e., the
cloud of gas and dust, from which the star evolved.
This cloud is not the same everywhere. I t is quite
possible that a star appearing in a certain place in the
universe will be, for instance, richer in heavy elements
than another one which is formed in a different place.
Spectral analysis of the composition of stars must
take into account numerous factors, such as gravitati-
onal forces, temperature, magnetic fields. But even with
114
observing all the rules of investigation, the data seems
inadequate: spectral analysis concerns only the outer,
surface layers of the star. What is going 011 in the inte-
rior of these far-distant bodies seems to be inaccessible
for study. The spectra of stars, however, show unmis-
takable evidence of the presence of elements which are
the products of nuclear reactions (barium, technetium,
zirconium) and which can be found only in the star's
interior. Hence it follows that stellar matter undergo-
es a process of mixing. From the point of view of the
physicist it is difficult to reconcile the idea of mixing
with that of equilibrium of the huge mass of stellar
matter, but for the chemist this spectroscopic data
constitutes material of inestimable value because it
permits well-founded assumptions to be made concer-
ning the course of nuclear reactions in the interiors of
celestial bodies.
Tl!e analysis of stars in the spherical part of the
Galaxy containing the oldest stars shows a low content
of heavy metals (according to L. Aller). On the other
hand, if the Galaxy did develop from a gas cloud
consisting mainly of hydrogen, there must be purely
hydrogen stars in it. Such stars include the subdwarfs.
They occupy a place midway between the stars of the
main sequence and the white dwarfs. In subdwarfs
there is a large amount of hydrogen while the quantity
of metals is small.
Table 8 (according to L. Aller) gives the logarithms
of the ratio of the number ..of atoms of a given element
on the Sun to the number of the same element in sub-
dwarfs (i.e., abundance). As can be seen, the numbers,
as a rule, are greater than zero, i.e., the amount of
metals in the Sun is greater than that in the subdwarfs.
Evidence of nuclear transformations changing the
"feat~es" of the star is sometimes very clear. Thus,
there are stars wherein hydrogen was converted to he-
8* 115
 Table B
Abundance of Elements in Subdwarfs

Abundance
Element
HD 140283 HD 1944.5

Carbon 3.40 2.25

Magnesium 1.87 0.58
Argon 2.73 1.54
Cobalt 2.02 1.37
Scandium 2.34 1.84
Titanium 1.72 1.20
Vanadium 1.76 1.93
Manganese 1.99 1.54
Iron 2.06 1.75
Nickel 1.42 1.53

lium; the atmosphere of such stars consists of helium.

Perhaps the mixing of stellar matter played a signifi-
cant part in the increase in the-helium content of the
outer layers of these stars',
Careful study of one of these stars showed the pre-
sence of carbon and neon as well as titanium in them.
In another helium star it was found that for every
500 helium atoms there were 0.56 carbon atom, 0.72 ni-
trogen atom, 1.0 oxygen atom, 3.2 neon atoms, 0.05
silicon atom and 0.5 magnesium atom. A bright bina-
1 A. Boyarchuk found eight stars in which the content of
helium was a hundred times greater than that of hydrogen and
for every 10, 000 helium atoms there was only one iron atom.
One of the helium stars did not contain hydrogen at all. This is
observed very rarely and apparently indicates that all the hy-
drogen was exhausted in the process of nuclear reactions in the
star.

116
ry star in the constellation Sagittarius, a supergiant
with a surface temperature of about 10, 000° C, is also
a star deficient in hydrogen: in its spectrum helium
lines are clearly seen while the hydrogen lines are very
faint. Apparently, these are stars that have exhausted
all their hydrogen in nuclear reactions; the presence
of carbon and nitrogen in them gives grounds for ma-
king correct surmises concerning the course of the
nuclear reactions that supply energy and produce the
nuclei of various elements.
Of great interest are the carbon stars. These stars
are comparatively cold (giants and supergiants). Their
surface temperature usually lies in the range of 2500-
6000 °C. At temperatures lower than 3500° C, when
there is an equal amount of oxygen and carbon in the
atmosphere, a great part of carbon and oxygen is pre-
sent in the form of carbon monoxide, CO. Other carbon
compcunds found in these stars are cyan (the CN
radical) and the CH radical. A small amount of the
oxides of titanium and zirconium which are resistant
to high temperatures is also present. If there is an
excess of hydrogen, the concentration of CN, CO, C 2
will be relatively low and the concentration of CH
will increase. -Such stars (CH-stars) are encountered
along with stars that are deficient in hydrogen.
In one of the stars it was found that the ratio of
the carbon content to the iron content was high: the
amount of carbon exceeded that of iron 25 times and
the ratio of carbon to hydrogen was equal to 40. This
means that the star is very rich in carbon and poor in
hydrogen. Variation in the brightness of one of the stars
of this type was even attributed to reduction in lumi-
nosity due to solid carbon particles scattered in the
star's atmosphere. A normal hydrogen content, howe-
vert is characteristic of the majority of carbon stars
(accordini to L. Aller),
117
 An important feature of carbon stars is their relative-
ly high content of the carbon isotope ~3C. The role of
this isotope in the total energy balance of the star is
very great. The processes in which it participates sup-
ply the star with energy; they occur only at very high
temperatures in the interior zones of the stars. The
appearance of the ~3C isotope in the surface layers can,
probably, be attributed to mixing.
A high content of metals located in the same subgro-
up of the periodic system as zirconium is characteris-
tic of a number of types of stars. These stars contain
the unstable element technetium, ::Tc. Technetium
nuclei could be formed from 98Mo as a result of the
capture of a neutron and subsequent loss of an electron
from the molybdenum nucleus (see ChI V, Para 5)
or in a photoprocess from 97M ol. I n any case the pre-
sence of the unstable nucleus affords convincing evi-
dence that nuclear reactions do occur in stars.
Astronomers and astrophysicists have performed an
enormous amount of work in-analyzing and correlating
spectral data and the information procured from meteo-
rites. As a result, a picture of the occurrence of elements
in the universe has been obtained. Figure 19 presents
the results of this work in the form of a curve showing
the dependence of the relative rate of occurrence of an
element on its atomic number. The sudden sharp zig-
zags and jumps indicate that certain elements are
preferred to others in outer space.
This is actually a fact! As has already been stated
in the chapter that deals with meteorites, elements with
even atomic numbers are encountered in them more

1 The :~Tc isotope was obtained artificially by Pierre and

Sieger in 1936 by exposing molybdenum to the action of deute-
rons, according to the equation
~iMo + d ~ ~3Tc + 2n
118
9

J
Sc
2

o
\A! t
1--._....._ ......_ ...._ ..._ ......._ _......_....-._......_ ......_ ....
o 10 20 3D 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Fig. 19. Abundance of elements in outer space: the atomic
numbers are plotted on the axis- of abscissas; the logarithms of
their content per 1012 II atoms, on the axis of ordinates

frequently than those with odd numbers. This is a ge-

neral rule. Why are elements with an even atomic num-
ber preferred? The reason is that their nuclei are more
stable; the stability of a nucleus depends on the ratio
119
of the. number of protons to the number of neutrons in
it. The most stable nuclei had a better chance of being
formed and surviving under drastic conditions.

4. STELLAR ATMOSPHERES. LIGHT AND GRAVITATION

For increasing our knowledge of the nature of the
chemical and physical processes that arise in the stars,
of special importance is knowledge of the violent sta-
ges of stellar life when there is a sharp increase in radi-
ation and temperature and the spectral lines become
more distinct. It is only rarely that such stages can be
observed and studied but then very valuable informa-
tion is obtained.
In ordinary periods when stars are in a tranquil
state, spectral analysis can also tell us very much
because radiation is virtually the only source of in-
formation about the far-distant celestial bodies.
Fortunately, stars are such powerful sources of radiati-
on that stellar spectroscopy and radioastronomy, as
yet, have far from exhausted their latent potentiali-
ties.
The hot stars have a very high temperature and
luminosity and extensive atmospheres. These stars
are enveloped in enormous masses of extremely hot ga-
ses which radiate so strongly that the radiation of the
star itself, i.e., its surface or photosphere, will not
be capable of dimming the radiation of the atmosphe-
re 1. The streams of radiation are so intense that the
pressure of light becomes an important factor, which
is not" of course, customary for us. Light exerts pres-
1 The contrary is true of the Sun. Because of the relative} y
small thickness of the outer layer of the chromosphere, its radi-
ation is feeble and the spectral lines are hardly visible on the
background of the bri(lht continuous spectrum of the photo-
8phere~

t20
sure! Although this expression is certain to be famili-
ar to many of the readers of this book, it may seem
strange to some of them: less than a hundred years have
passed since the time when not only the layman but
prominent physicists regarded the idea of light pres-
sure to be devoid of any meaning.
The brilliant experiments of P. Lebedev have pro-
ved that light beams are capable of deflecting falling
dust particles from their normal trajectory and can
set in motion small impellers placed in an evacuated
vessel.
Light is absorbed and emitted by atoms in small
portions, quanta, the quantum being proportional to
the frequency of oscillations of the electric and magne-
tic forces in the light wave. This important conclusion
was drawn by M. Planck in 1900 and constitutes the
essence of one of the most well-founded chapters in
theoretical physics - the quantum theory. A. Ein-
stein considered light quanta to be particles, photons.
This was an acknowledgement of the mysterious dual
nature of the behaviour of light: sometimes light be-
haves like a wave and sometimes (in particular in
reactions with atoms) like a stream of particles (i.e.,
photons or quanta). If a particle has an energy E, then
consequently it possesses a momentum P. In accordan-
ce with the laws of mechanics the kinetic energy E
corresponds to a momentum
P=V2mE
According to Newton's law a force is equal to the
mass multiplied by the acceleration:
~v
F=m-
~t

where dv is the change in velocity in a period of time

At. If the time is taken to be equal to unity and the
t2i
initial velocity to be equal to zero, then
F(1.>=mv (L\v=v-vo)
But the product mv is the momentum P, hence,
F(t>=P
Pressure is a force referred to unit area. Therefore,
if photons possess a momentum, they should exert
pressure on the surface of any particle they meet on
their path and transfer a respective momentum to it.
Can light resist the force of gravity? Under Earth
conditions it does seem impossible to fly off on a light
ray. But when a star is formed frdm an enormous mass
of matter, the gravitational forces compress the matter.
An increase in temperature finally results in the deve-
lopment of reactions (discussed below in Ch. V) which
are accompanied by intense radiation. The extremely
hot mass ofp stellar matter becomes the sphere of action
not of gravitational forces which compress the matter
but also forces of gas and light pressures that strive
to scatter it. Equilibrium of these forces is maintained
for a certain period of time but it is unstable due to
the fact that the reactions which are responsible for the
radiation proceed continously.
During the life of a star the pressure of ultraviolet
rays is such that atoms of hydrogen, helium and other
elements are thrown out by the stream of light into the
depths of outer space. SOIne stars (of the type of
Wolf-Rayet) which have a temperature from 40, oaooe
to 100, OOO°C continuously emit masses of gases.
If the radiant particle (for instance, an atom or ion)
moves rapidly (the velocity of a particle emitted
from a star reaches 2000 km/s) , the position of the
spectral lines corresponding to this particle is shifted
(the Doppler effect). Naturally, the masses of scattered
gases contain particles moving with various speeds
122
 and in various directions. As a result, instead of dis-
tinct lines in the spectrum there appear bands (the
lines are blurred). These bands are characteristic of
the Wolf-Rayet stars. The Soviet astronomer N. Kozy-
rev has shown that such a star can lose in the course
of one year a mass of the order of a tenth of the mass of
.. the Sun. The Wolf-Rayet stars are relatively short-
lived; at the end of about ten thousand years of vio-
lent and extravagant life they will exhaust all their
energy resources and their mass will be reduced, their
temperature lowered and the emission of gases dis-
continued.

5. NOVAE
.\ Among the serenely shining stars scattered in the
firmament a spectacular phenomenon occasionally
occurs. One of the dim stars that was hardly visible
suddenly begins to shine more and more brightly.
During several days its brightness increases by 10-14
stellar magnitudes, and it becomes hundreds of
thousands of times brighter: The dazziling flare, howe-
ver, rapidly fades away and in the place where the
mysterious star had just shone so brightly again a very
dim little star appears. Frequently this star was pre-
viously unnoticed, and it .was supposed that the flare
signified the appearance of a new star. The term
"nova" is still used in astronomy. In the 2nd century
Be Hipparchus observed a brilliant nova in the
constellation Scorpio. Evidently it was this unexpec-
ted discovery that prompted him to draw up a list
of all the stars, indicating their brightness. Thus was
,the first stellar catalogue compiled: it was an important
eontribution to progress in the field of astronomy.
Such miracles are not often observed. In Europe
novae were observed.in 1572 and 1[604. Novae are-
123.
known to have appeared in 1918 and 1934. They attai-
ned the brightness of stars of the first magnitude. In
1'901'~ 1925, 1946 explosions of novae were observed not
by specialists but by a postman, a high-school student
and a track-walker, respectively.
In general, a considerable number of novae explode
in our galaxy - up to two hundred each year, but not
all of them are bright enough for detailed analysis.
What is signified by the eruption of a nova? What
forces cause an enormou~ mass of matter to suddenly
participate in a mysterious violent process accompanied
by the release of a tremendous amount of energy and
a sharp increase in the intensity of radiation? Can it
be that the Sun (which is a star!) is also subject to
such fits of rage? Perhaps mankind should fear that
at some tragic moment a powerful avalanche of. light
from the exploding Sun will burn all life on Earth.
Does this danger actually exist? All these questions can
be answered only after defining the cause of the explosi-
on of novae and on understanding the physical and
chemical essence of the whole process of stellar evolu-
tion.
Spectral analysis shows that large masses of atoms
are ejected into space; the cloud of atoms is permeated by
its own radiation and the Doppler effect gives evidence
that the atoms move rapidly in the direction of the ob-
server on the Earth and in the opposite direction.
Under the pressure exerted by light. the entire atmo...
sphere of the star is stripped from it and spreads ·out into
the surrounding space (E. Mustel). It can be seen as
a nebulous: cloud distributed around the point where
the explosion occurred (Fig. 20).
Repeated explosions result in the loss of matter to
space; the star contracts and is finally transformed to
a white dwarf - a small and very dense body. From
studies of the characteristic changes in brightness which
ta4
precede an explosion" it can he concluded that the
danger of self-combustion does not threaten the Sun,
and mankind has .no grounds for worrying about the
star that gives life to it.

Fig. 20. Ejection of cloud of gas into space. Nebula GC 725

From studies of novae by up ..to-date astrophysical

methods it has been, concluded that they are binary
stars. The pair of stars consists of a subdwarf having
a high temperature (class B) and a cold dark satellite
(class K or M). The satellite loses part of its mass thro-
ugh the pointjo] the binary system at which the gravi-
tational forces are balanced. As a result, a gaseous
ring appears around the hot star (gas partially evapo-
125
rates through the "outer" point 01 equipoise). The
accumulation of hydrogen in the gas ring is accompani-
ed by an increase in temperature, the generation of
nuclear reactions and ends in an explosion (the star
goes nova).

6. SUPERNOVAE
Sometimes increadibly violent explosions occur -
for a short time the star shines like millions and billi-
ons of suns. In...1885, a nova appeared in the Andromeda
nebula, whose brightness was almost 10 billion times
greater than that of the Sun (taking into account the
distance to the nebula).
Such stars are called supernovae - they differ
from novae not only in brightness but in other attri-
butes as well; in particular, after the spectacular explo-
sion of a supernova its remnants emit radio waves for
a long time 1. On July 4, 1054, as recorded in ancient
chronicles (Chinese, Arabic and Japanese), a star
appeared in the sky (it was called a "visiting star"),
which was so bright that it was visible even in the
daytime. It shone for 23 days and then it began to
decrease in brightness.
In our times examination of the part of the sky
where, according to the ancient chronicles, this star
had appeared showed that all that has remained of this
great supernova is the Crab Nebula (named for its
shape). This nebula is rapidly expanding at a rate of
about 1300 km/s; two stars can be seen in its centre.
The diameter of the Crab Nehula is equal to 6 light-
years and the distance to it from our solar system is
over 4000 light-years. Calculations have shown that
1 Yu, Pskovsky, Novye i sverkhnovye svezdy (Novae and
Supernovae), "Nauka" Publishers, 1974; I. Azimov, The Universe,
Walker and Company New York, 1969.

126
about 800 years ago the entire mass of the nebula
was concentrated in its centre. It was then that there
occurred the violent explosion which was taken by
the observers to be the appearance of a "visiting star"
and from that time the nebula resulting from the ex-
plosion began to expand. Most astonishing was the
extreme violence of the explosion and the intense
radiance attained by the stellar matter at the time of
the appearance of the nebula. Studies showed that a su-
pernova shines like a hundred million Suns and ejects
streams of gas rushing along at a rate of the order of
6000 km/s! At present it has been established that such
explosions of supernovae occur in the galaxies once in
400 years (on the average, according to P. Kukarkin).
The explosions of novae and supernovae and the
solar flares which occasionally occur on the Sun's chro-
mosphere can cause such an increase in the radiation
of cosmic rays that despite the protective properties
of the Earth's atmosphere, they can considerably af-
fect life on the Earth. The increase in cosmic radiation
is the cause of radio and magnetic disturbances on the
Earth, of changes in the weather; it influences the
health and the course of diseases of people and animals.
It is even supposed that the extinction of certain
species of animals (e.g., the dinosaur), which inhabited
the Earth before man appeared on it, is associated
with the intensification of cosmic radiation resulting
from the sudden explosion of a supernovae.

7. COMETS
The spectacular appearance of comets in the sky
excited the minds and imagination of observers to an
even greater extent than meteorites did. Their enor-
mous luminous tails moved across the whole sky and
gave rise to co~pletely false conceptions of the mass
t27
and density of the celestial body approaching the
Earth. Scientists have registered the majority of comets
one way or another and by 1966, astronomical catalo-
gues contained data on 876 comets.
According to modern data a comet is composed of
a solid nucleus (core) surrounded by a tenuous mass
of gases and sometimes a tail. The solid nucleus is not
large - only a few kilometres in diameter (sometimes
even much less, only a few hundred metros). The nucle-
us consists of solidified gases, mainly methane and
ammonia (methane-ammonia ices) containing inclusi-
ons of mineral particles (from 10 to 30 per cent). As
a comet approaches the Sun, its state changes. Heat
from the Sun causes the ices to warm up and evaporate.
The resulting gases produce the coma surrounding the
nucleus. Together the nucleus and the coma are called
the head of the comet. Part of the coma is blown away
into a stream behind, to form or increase the comet's
tail, always directed away from the SUD.
Solar radiation is also responsible for the appearan-
ce of active particles called radicals. The spectra of
comets indicate that the masses of gases in comets
contain the following radicals: CN, CO, CH, CH 2 , C2 ,
C 3 • By means of powerful telescopes and spectrographs,
evidence has been obtained of the presence in comets
of the radicals CO+, CO;, N;, 0;, i.e., of ions of the
oxides of carbon (CO, CO 2 ) , oxygen and nitrogen and
also, in a number of cases, of metallic sodium. Sodium
can be detected in the tail of a comet at a distance up
to 500,000 km.
 CHAPTER V

Nuclear Reactions and Sources

of Stellar Energy

The central problem of stellar physics and chemistry

is the question of the source of energy that feeds the
extremely hot "furnaces" for millions and billions of
years. Just as important is the question of what che-
mical processes are going on in stars. There is every
reason to assume that stars form atoms of all the known
elements. At the present time there is no longer any
doubt that the stars are actually atomic "factories"
Radioactive elements, for example technetium, have
been observed in the spectra of stars. Technetium is
-unstahle and it should decay and disappear in a very
short period of time; hence, its presence in the star's
atmosphere indicates that it is being formed in some
nuclear process. Moreover, nuclear reactions are the
source of energy of the star. That is why we must turn
from sf ars to atoms. -

1. CONSTITUENTS OF THE ATOl\fIC NUCLEUS

In order to understand the processes which take
place in the stars it is necessary to study atoms! Per-
haps what astonishes astronomers most of all in the
magnitudes encountered in the universe is the relation
between the size of a star and that of an atom; milli-
ons of kilometres - that is the diameter of a star and

'-01266 129
hundredth millionths of a centimetre - that is the
diameter of an atom. This means that an atom is 1019
times less in size than a star (on the average).The mass
of the Sun contains approximately 1056 atoms, and the
fate of this star depends on the state and transforrnati-
ODS of this enormous number of minute structures.
Under the conditions prevailing in the interiors of stars,
atoms manifest great activity; they not only lose
their electrons (are ionized), but their nuclei enter
into nuclear reactions. An atom consists of a nucleus
carrying a charge of posi ti ve electricity, surrounded
by electrons moving around it. The radius of the elec-
tron orbi ts is equal to about 10-8 em", The size of the
nucleus is much smaller and has a value of from
10-12 to 10-13 ern. Hence, the space between the nucleus
and electrons is very great in comparison with the size
of the nucleus. The atom is by no means a dense parti-
cle; most of the volume we have in mind when we speak
of.a radius of 10-8 em is actually free of particles. The
density of nuclear matter, on the contrary, is extremely
high. The mass of an electron is so small that it can
be entirely neglected in most cases; consequently, the
nucleus constitutes practically all the mass of the atom.
The small volume of the nucleus is occupied by parti-
cles compressed to a density of 1014g/cm3 • The nucleus
is composed of protons (p) carrying a positive charge
and having a mass equal to unity (to be more exact,
1.0072767) according to the carbon scale and neut-
rons (n), neutral particles of a mass of 1.0086654.
According to all available data, the proton and neut-
1 In atomic physics the unit usually employed for measu-
ring distances is the angstrom, Le., 10-8 em. This unit is deno-
ted as A and approximately corresponds to the diameter of the
hydrogen atom. At present, when measuring small distance, the
unit often used is the nanometre (10- 1 m):
1 .A = 0.1 nm

130
ron are two different states of one and the same parti-
cle known as a nucleon. The conversion of a proton to
a neutron and vice versa, however, results in the appe-
arance of new particles. If a neutron is converted to
a proton, there simultaneously appears an electron,
e, and a very light particle called an anti-neutrino, v:-
n~p+;+e
The energy released when a neutron is converted to
a proton causes the emission of ~-particles which are
electrons moving with great velocities (up to 99 per cent
of the velocity of light). It is apparent that when an
atomic nucleus undergoes such a transformation, the
number of positive charges in the nucleus increases.
The number of positive charges, as is known, deter-
mines the atomic number of the element in Mendeleev's
periodic system. Consequently, the resulting nucleus
should have an atomic number that is greater by one
than the atomic number of the initial nucleus.
The conversion of a proton to a neutron must be
accompanied by the emission of a positive particle,
otherwise the number of charges in the right-hand side
of the equation will not be equal to those in the left-
hand side. As a matter of fact, a positively charged
particle of a mass equal to that of the electron, the
+
positron e, has been detected and studied.
The reaction of the transformation of a proton to
a neutron is also accompanied by the appearance of
a very light particle, the neutrino (a neutrino differs
from an anti-neutrino in spin, Le., in the direction of
its rotation and certain other properties which we'll
not go into here):
+
p-+n+e+v
The resulting nucleus has an atomic number which
is less by one than that of the initial nucleus. A chan-:
9. t3t
ge in the atomic number signifies the conversion of
one element into another - its neighbour in the peri-
odic system. In other words, the initial and resulting
substances in rt\iclear reactions are different elemen ts,
That is where nuclear reactions differ basically from
ordinary chemical reactions in which transformation of
molecules takes place but the conversion of elements
is never observed.

2. PROPERTIES OF SOME ELEMENTARY PARTICLES

It was the study of the nuclear reactions of a-par-
ticles, i.e., helium nuclei, and beryllium nuclei that
led to the discovery of neutrons. Let us denote the
helium nucleus by the symbol :He. The upper left
numeral indicates the mass of the nucleus; the lower
left numeral, the nuclear charge. The beryllium nucle-
us accordingly is denoted as :Be. The reaction is
expressed by the equation
tHe+ [Be ==n+ tic
As a result of the reaction a carbon nucleus and
a neutron, n, are formed. The neutron is not deflected
by an electric or magnetic field and does not ionize
air; that is why it is hard to detect it. However, on
colliding with a hydrogen nucleus, the neutron trans-
mits energy to it and makes it move. The mqtion of
the proton is easily detected because it is a charged
particle. Therefore, neutrons are studied by directing
them onto a compound containing hydrogen (water
or paraffin). The appearance of protons indicates the
presence of neutrons.
The discovery of the neutron was the basis for deve-
loping the proton-neutron structure of the atomic nuc-
leus (W. Heisenberg, D. Ivanenko). It was assumed
that the nucleus consists of protons and neutrons;
132
that the mass of the nucleus is equal to the sum of their
masses and the atomic number is determined by the
number of protons.
In the atomic nucleus the protons and neutrons are
continuously being converted into each other at such
a.rate that in the normal state no emission of particles
can be observed. In these transformations, however,
the neutron in the nucleus is quite stable whereas
the neutron emitted from the nucleus disintegrates
rather energetically (its half-life is equal to 12 minu-
tes). Soon after the discovery of the positron, another
remarkable particle was discovered, whose existence
was postulated, on the basis of theoretical reasoning,
by Pauli back in 1933. This particle was called a neu-
trino. A characteristic property of the neutrin·o, which
made it difficult to obtain evidence of its existence, is
its unusual penetrating capacity. B. Pontecorvo made
calculations which showed that a neutrino could pene-
trate unimpeded a cast-iron block of a thickness exce-
eding a billion times the distance from the Earth to
the Sun. That is the reason why it is so difficult to
investigate the neutrino. Only a nuclear reactor 1,
which is a powerful source of these particles, proved
to be suitable for the experiments carried out by
Reines and Cohen. They proved that these particles
really exist. The mass of a neutrino when .at rest is
equal to zero. The entire mass of a neutrino is associ-
ated with its motion, and it reacts with other parti-
cles very feebly. The mean free path of the neutrino
is close to the diameter of the universe.
How is it that protons and neutrons are retained
close to each other and form particles (atomic nuclei)
with an incredibly high density of 10 14-101& g/cm''?

1 At the present time, other processes are known that result

In the appearance of neutrinos.

133
The reactive forces that bind the nuclear particles
together are sf a peculiar nature. In order to understand
the reasons for their appearance let us consider the
behaviour of an electron in an electric field. Electrons
interact with photons. The electron continuously absorbs
and emits photons. This process takes place so
quickly that the energy of the system as a whole does
not, in essence, change (otherwise when a photon is
emitted by an electron, the total energy would
increase; and when a photon is absorbed, decrease,
because the photon itself possesses energy). Such pro-
cesses are called virtual ones. The results of the vir-
tual processes occurring when an electron reacts with
the electric field cannot, in essence, be observed, and
the law of conservation of energy is not violated beca-
use it applies to values that can be observed. On the
other hand, if energy is supplied from an outside
source, photons can be detected. Thus, an increase in
the velocity of the electron causes radiation, i.e, ,pho-
tons are actually emitted. This conception was appli-
ed to nuclear forces. The role of the photon in the exchan-
ge processes in the nucleus is played by -partlcles
called rt-mesons. the existence of which was predicted by
Kh. Yukawa. Mesons were discovered in 1947, 12 years
after Kh. Yukawa had predicted their existence.
Mesons (neutral and charged n-mesons) are virtu-
ally emitted and absorbed by nucleons and in this
way bind them. Consequently, rt-mesons, or pions,
play a very important part in determining the nature
of nuclear forces. Mesons are short-lived particles but
in the nucleus they participate in such rapid proces-
ses that their life is long enough to carry out this
binding function. The forces connected with virtual
exchange by means of mesons are not the only ones
that act in the nucleus; other kinds of forces are known
as well as other types of elementary particles.
134
 3. NUCLEAR REACTIONS

Nuclear reactions are caused by the interaction of

an atomic nucleus with some elementary particle or
with the nucleus of another, lighter atom. In the gene-
ral case, under consideration are processes in which
Ii target nucleus is subjected to bombarding by neut-
rons, protons, helium nuclei (cc-particles) or even
relatively heavy nuclei, for example, carbon nuclei.
If the bombarding particle carries a positive charge,
its interaction with the target nucleus is impeded
because of the repulsive forces; of importance are also
the centripetal forces that arise when impact is not
head-on.
As a result, only high-energy particles can enter
iJ\to a nuclear reaction. This is, in a measure, analo-
gous to what is observed in ordinary chemical reacti-
ons; only nuclei or atoms with a certain excess energy,
.the energy of activation, are chemically active. In
nuclear processes this excess for charged particles
is very great: 15 million volts for the reaction involved
in the formation of a deuteron from two protons.
However, if the bombarding particle has no charge
( a neutron), the chances of its reaction with the nuc-
leus will be great even at low energies. In this case,
an increase in velocity will have the opposite effect.
Neutrons which move too quickly do not remain near
the target nuclei long enough to react with it and the
rate of the nuclear reaction diminishes. For this reason
it was the reactions of various atomic nuclei with slow
neutrons that made it possible to obtain much valuable
information about nuclear reactions in general. Al-
though eharged particles are employed for bombarding
target nuclei, in this case, special and very expensive
apparatus is needed for accelerating the particles to
such speeds that they burst through the energy barrier
135
of the target nucleus and make their way inside the
nucleus.
A common feature of all nuclear reactions is the
formation of a compound nucleus, Le., a target nucleus
that has absorbed a bombarding particle. The size of
an atomic nucleus is small (10- 12_10-13 em) and
a very short time (10- 22 s) is needed for the particle
to pass this infinitesimal distance. This is characteri-
stic nuclear time. Actually, the particle reacts with
the nucleus during a period of time which is tens and
hundred millions of times longer; hence, the life time
of a compound nucleus is equal to 10-16-10- 15 s. In
this short interval of time the energy imparted to the
nucleus by the incoming particle is distributed among
the nucleons present there. It is not very likely that
the energy necessary for ejecting a particle from the
nucleus will be concentrated on one nucleon; and con-
sequently, for a short time the nucleus remains in
a state of excess energy, i.e., in the excited state. In
some cases the nucleus returns to the ground state,
losing its excess energy in the form of quanta of
",-radiation. This type of reaction in which a' nucleus
holds an additional particle is called capture.
It does not matter how the nucleus came to be
excited; therefore, the reactions incited by a-parti-
cles, protons and neutrons, in general, resemble one
another, differing only in the energy required to over-
come the repulsive forces, i.e., the Coulomb barrier.

4. NUCLEAR ENERGY SOURCES

The small size of atomic nuclei and the correspon-
ding extremely high density of nuclear matter reaching
1014 g/cm 3 imply that powerful forces compress the
constituents of the nucleus and maintain the stabili-
ty of the whole system of nucleons. Equilibrium in the

136
 nucleus can, however, be disturbed sometimes because
of external action such as the penetration of a-particles,
neutrons and protons into the nucleus and sometimes
due to internal processes of redistribution of energy,
of which we know very little as yet.
As a result of the disturbance of equilibrium, the
nucleus passes to the excited state; then the recon-
struction of the nucleus, i.e., a nuclear reaction (nuc-
lear conversion) follows. Instead of the original nucle-
us and the bombarding particle, another nucleus is
produced, and often a different particle is emitted.
The most amazing thing in these reactions is that
in the general case, the sum of the masses of the initial
particles is not equal to the sum of the masses of the.
.resulting particles. Profound analysis has shown that,
virtually, in any chemical reaction accompanied by
a change in energy of substances, the sums of the mas-
ses of the initial and resulting substances must differ
from each other. This is because a change in energy E
is equivalent to a change in mass E/c 2 (where c is the
"velocity of light) and, conversely, if the mass changes
by a value m, this is equivalent to a change in energy
equal to mc 2 (according to Einstein's famous equation
for mass-energy equivalence).
Ordinary chemical reactions, however, are accom-
panied by extremely small changes in mass in the
reacting and resulting substances, which cannot be
detected by any methods of precise weighing; this is
quite natural because the energy effects of such reacti-
ons are very small", It is quite another matter when
nuclear processes are concerned. The first investigators
of radioactive transformations were astonished by the
enormous amount of energy released on decay of nuclei
1 For example, the thermal effect of the reaction of the
formation of 1 mole COa (94 kcal) corresponds to a change in
mass of only 4.39X 10- 9 g.

137
of natural radioactive substances (radium, polonium
and others). The energy effects of nuclear reactions
exceed those of ordinary chemical reactions millions
of times, and it is easy to understand that, in this
case, the change in mass of the substances that parti-
cipate in the reaction can be observed. Thus, the con-
version of four protons to the helium nucleus corres-
ponds to a reduction in mass (mass defect) by 0.028
atomic mass unit (according to the carbon scale),
which, in turn, corresponds to the release of an enor-
mous amount of energy equal to 0.25 X 1020 erg:
E = (4 X 1.008 - 4.004) c2 = O.028c2 = 0.25 X 1020
That is, 0.25 X 1020 erg/mole is obtained when
4 grams of hydrogen are converted to helium. Expres-
sed in terms of calories this amounts ~ to 6.4
X 108 kcal/mole; whereas in ordinary chemical reactions
heat is evolved or absorbed in a quantity measured by
hundreds (102 ) of kilogram-ealories per mole of sub-
stance.
The mass defect is expressed either in atomic mass
units (AMU) or as me" where m is the mass of an elect-
ron (9.28 X 10-28 g). The mass of an electron is 1840
times less than an AMU; hence, 1840 mc2 corresponds
to the energy released when the mass is decreased by
1 AMU. It follows, therefore, that for the reaction of
formation of helium the energy released is equal to
E = 0.028 X 1840mc2 = 52mc2
The unit mc2 is equal to the kinetic energy of an
electron moving through a potential difference of
510,000 V = 5.1 X 10 5 eV = 0.51 MeV (megaelectron-
volt; M denotes a million ; MeV, a million electron
volts). Thus the above reaction gives an energy of
0.51 X 52 == 26.52 MeV. Frequently, the atomic ener-
gy unit (AEU) is employed. It is equal to the energy

138
l corresponding to a change in mass by 1 AMU, and
since 1 AMU is equal to 1.67 X 10 -24, the energy will
be 1.67 X 10-24 c2 ; 1 AMU will be

1~-24 c X 0.51 = 931 (MeV)

2
1.67 x
me

The greater the energy released when the nucleus

is formed from its constituents (protons and neutrons),
the more stable the nucleus.
The formation of a deuteron, the nucleus of deute-
rium, from a proton and a neutron (p +
n = d) cor-
responds to the change in mass that occurs as the result
of the transformation of a proton (of mass 1.007596)
and a neutron (of mass 1.008986) to a deuteron (of
mass 2.014194):
1.007596 + 1.008986-2.014194 = 0.002388
This mass corresponds to a release of energy equal
to 2.2 MeV. If another neutron is added to the deuteron,
the nucleus of tritium (triton) is obtained; the energy
that binds the second neutron is greater than the bin-
ding energy of the first neutron and is equal to 6. 72 MeV.
Triton is relatively stable. This nucleus disintegrates
to form :He and an electron, releasing a small amount
of energy (19.2 X 103 eV).
The binding energy of the nucleus is the amount of
energy required for dissociating the nucleus into its
constituents, protons and neutrons. The binding energy
of the oxygen nucleus (160 ) is as great as 128 MeV; of
aluminium, 224 MeV; of chlorine, 298 MeV; of xenon,
1096 MeV. These values clearly illustrate the remar-
kable stability of the majority of nuclei. Stability
depends on the number of nucleons. The most stable
nuclei are those with a mass number from 40 to 100.
The binding energy calculated per one nucleon dimi-
139
nishes from 8. 7 MeV (in the most stable nuclei) to
7.5 MeV in uranium. Nuclei of small mass, as we have
already seen from the examples given above, are less
stable; in them the binding energy per one nucleon is
as small as 1 MeV. Nuclei with even numbers of pro-
tons and neutrons (even-even nuclei) have binding
energies of the highest values; even-odd nuclei are
less stable and odd-odd nuclei are even less stable.
This is due to the peculiar properties of the nu-
clear forces which" act on the nucleons within the
nucleus. .,
In nuclear reactions the excitation energy of a com-
pound nucleus is also very great. Thus, for instance,
when a neutron excites an atomic nucleus having a mass
number of about 100, the energy in the 'nucleus is
increased by 10 MeV Consequently, the increase of
energy of one nucleon in such a compound nucleus is
approximately 0.1 MeV; this corresponds to a tempera-
ture of a billion degrees. The compound nucleus is
heated to a temperature of a billion degrees! Comparing
the nucleus with a drop of liquid, which it does resem-
ble in some of its physical properties, it is sometimes
said that the particles evaporate from such a heated
nucleus.

5. TYPES OF NUCLEAR REACTIONS

Let us consider the most important types of nuclear
reactions'.

1 In those cases when atoms play the role of target.s or are

the end products resulting from nuclear reactions within the
target, atomic nuclei are denoted by the following chemical
symbols; H - protium, n:- deuterium, T - tritium, He-
helium, etc. The bombarding particles are denoted by the follo-
wing letters: p - proton, d - deuteron, n - neutron, ex;-
alpha-particles.

140
 Reactions Induced by Neutrons
These reactions are of great importance in space
chemistry. Neutrons readily penetrate into various
nuclei, and charged particles can be emitted due to
the disintegration of the resulting compound nucleus.
This type of reaction is characteristic of nuclei of isoto-
pes of small mass, for instance,
fiMg+An -+ f~Na+lH
In elements with nuclei of a medium mass, partial
inelastic scattering of neutrons occurs. This means
that the nucleus which absorbs a neutron also emits
a neutron (another one) and remains in an excited
state; this is followed by the radiation of a 'V-quantum
and the transition to the normal state.
The capture of a neutron by a nucleus is also obser-
ved:
i~Al+~n ~ f~Al+,\,

The aluminium nucleus resulting from this nuclear

reaction, the same as the isotope ~tNa, is radioactive;
reactions induced by neutrons often result in the for-
mation of unstable radioactive nuclei and therefore
are important means of obtaining artificial radioactive
elements which are widely used in science and technolo-
gy for solving various complex problems.

Reactions Induced by Protons

Reactions induced by protons include, for instan-
ce, the reaction of the conversion of lithium to helium:
~Li+p -+ 2~He+d
This reaction is accompanied by a release of energy.
141
 At very high temperatures, nuclear reactions deve-
lop in the interior of stars, as a result of which four
protons are converted into the helium nucleus. One of
these reactions is known as the proton cycle and proceeds
according to the following scheme:
+
II-I+IH ~ fD+e+'V
iD+IH -+- ~He+y
IHe+IHe-+ iHe+21H
The formation of helium is a powerful source of
energy that maintains the energy equilibrium in a star.
Specifically, these reactions maintain the temperature
of the Sun.

Reactions I nduced by Deuterons

A deuteron consists of a neutron and a proton bound
together rather feebly: the binding energy is 2.22 MeV.
The low binding energy is due to the size of the deute-
ron which, on the average, exceeds the radius of acti-
on of nuclear forces.
When a deuteron approaches an atomic nucleus,
the nuclear forces repel the proton but have no effect
on the penetration of the neutron into the nucleus.
As a result, the weak bond between the proton and
neutron in the deuteron is broken, the neutron is ab-
sorbed by the nucleus and the proton is ejected. This
explains the character of nuclear reactions in which
deuterons participate, these reactions are often accom-
panied by the emission of a proton. The following
processes are examples of such reactions:
ilP + d == ffP + p
ILi+a=ILi+p (conversion of lithium isotope of small
mass to the heavy one)

142
 By means of reactions induced by deuterons it be-
came possible to obtain the :He isotope and to syn-
thesize tritium:
fD+fD -+ IHe+n
fD+fD ~ fT+p

Reactions Induced by a-Particles

Alpha-particles were one of the first means by which
it became possible to penetrate into the nucleus and
induce nuclear reactions. An especially important role
in the development of atomic physics was played by
the reaction of ex-particles and beryllium nuclei becau-
se this reaction causes the emission of a neutron.
Neutrons also appear when a stream of a-particles acts
on' the nuclei of lithium, magnesium and other ele-
ments:
iLi+a -+ l~B+n
fiMg+a -+ flSi+n

Photonuclear Reactions
A nucleon can be torn out of an atomic nucleus by
the action of a powerful 'V-quantum on the nucleus.
Only y-quanta with an energy greater than 8 MeV can
be used to bring about this process. With the aid of
:8 betatron, synchrotron or other accelerators of elect-
rons it was possible to investigate the reactions in
which a neutron escapes from an atom (for example,
from the copper atom) under the action of y-quanta
having an energy of about 20 MeV. Reactions in which
neutrons and positrons were forced out of the atoms of
indium, thorium and other elements were also studied.
One of the conclusions drawn from investigations in
the field of photonuclear processes is that the y-quan-

143
 Table 9
Some Typical Nuclear Reactions

Bombarding
particle Brief denotation ot nuclear reaction

p ~Li (p, n) ~Be A9F1(p , d) ~60

d [Be (d, n) lOB ~2C (d, n) ~3N ~4N (d, p)

~5N

n ~Li (n, d) fT 12 C (n, ex) :Be ~4N (n, d) l4N (n, p) ~4N (n, 2ex)
~lB 14C iLi

'V-quantum iD (1', n) IH :Be (1', n) :Be

tum is not produced in these reactions hut that energy
is absorbed by a proton on the surface of the nucleus,
i.e., a phenomenon analogous to the photoeffect occurs.

Brief Denotations of Nuclear Reactions

It is convenient to write down the equations of
nuclear reactions in the following way: the initial
nucleus is denoted by the usual chemical symbol;
then, in parentheses, are written the symbol of the
particle that acted on the nucleus and, after a cornma,
that of the particle or y-quantu.m emitted in the reac-
tion. To the right of the parenthesis is written the
symbol of the resulting nucleus; for instance, the
reaction
\
fAP + d -+ r~P +p
can be written as follows:
lAP (d, p)f!P
where d is a deuteron and p is a proton.
Table 9 gives some brief denotations of nuclear
reactions.

6. SOURCES OF SOLAR ENERGY

From where does the Sun derive its energy? Due to
what processes does it pour out streams of radiation,
maintain the temperature of plasma at a level of tens
of millions of degrees and continue this extravagant
activity during many billions of years?
There is no ordinary chemical reaction that could
supply the Sun with the necessary amount of energy!
Even rough calculations show that such chemical
reactions are unsuitable for furnishing the required
energy. It was once supposed that the source of energy

10-01266 145
 could be processes of radioactive decay. But there is
very little radium and, in general, small quantities
of all heavy nuclei on the Sun. Evidently some other
process provides the Sun with energy. It should be
remembered that the Sun consists almost entirely of
hydrogen and helium. Perhaps this is the clue to the
mystery of its energy resources. Can hydrogen be trans-
formed to helium? How much energy is evolved in
this reaction? We have already calculated it. I twas
found that in the reaction '4I-I = He, i.e., as a result
of the conversion of four atoms of hydrogen to a helium
atom, the total mass is reduced by 0.028 AMU and
an enormous amount of energy equal to 26.5 MeV is
released. I t may be that the Sun is a gigantic plasma
fire in which hydrogen burns and is consumed in the
formation of helium. The energy thus obtained is quite
sufficient to maintain a temperature of millions of
degrees for billions of years.
Solar energy is dispersed in space and even reaches
our planet. According to the law of mass-energy equi-
valence a certain amount of mass would be equivalent
to a certain amount of energy if mass disappeared and
energy appeared in its place. Hence, the loss in mass
corresponding to solar radiation can be determined.
The so-called mass defect resulting from nuclear reac-
tions carried out in atomic reactors during several
months amounts to grams, but in nuclear processes
on the SUD it amounts to millions of tons. Every second
the Sun loses an energy of 1023 kcal or 4.182 X 1033 erg:
the mass which corresponds to this energy can be found
from tLe equation E = Smc":
E 4.182 X 1033 11 6
~m=-;2= 9x 1020 =46 X 10 g or 4.6 X 10 tons
Every second the Sun loses more than 4.5 million
tons of mass and as a result of this process produces

'146
powerful streams of radiation. Only about 2 kg of mass
comes every second to our Earth, the little blue pla-
net, and this amount supplies the energy for all life
on Earth!

Cyclic Nuclear Processes on the Sun

Thus it seems that the source of energy has been fo-
und. Not only the Sun, but many stars much larger
than the Sun (the very luminous white and red giants)
are hydrogen-helium spheres in which hydrogen is
being converted to helium. Our universe is a world
of hydrogen and helium. At once there arise several
questions: is it so easy to combine four hydrogen nuc-
l~, i.e., four protons, to form one particle, if we take
into account that the chances that four particles re-
pelling each other will meet at one point must be very
small? Why, in general, are only two elements conside-
red when all the elements (although in small quanti-
ties) are present in outer space? The Sun, for exam-
ple, contains over 60 elements; many elements are
found in stars, comets and interstellar matter. Where
did they come from and what part do they play in nuc-
lear reactions? We'Il, first of all, answer the first
question. It is in fact difficult to unite four particles
all at once, but it is easier to first unite two of them
and then the other two. Evidently, two protons com-
bine with one another to form a nucleus of heavy hydro-
gen, the deuterium. In this reaction a particle of small
mass, the positron, and the mysterious neutrino appear.
Then the heavy hydrogen nucleus reacts with a proton
to form the helium nucleus with a mass of 3 and
a y-photon (radiation). Finally, two particles, nuclei
of the helium isotope, :He, collide to form the end
product :He and two protons. These protons enter into
10* 147
the reaction again. On examining the schematic rep-
resentation of this reaction given on the diagram in
Fig. 21, it can be noticed that it is similar to a diagram
illustrating the action of a catalyzer: a number of pro-
tons enter into the reaction
and leave it, involving ad-
26Mev T<10 7/(
ditional protons in the pro-
cess. The temperature at
which this process takes
place is 107°K (K denotes
Kelvin degrees; the tempe-
rature is reckoned from ab-
solute zero equal to -273°C).
If the temperature exceeds
1.3 X 107°K, another reac-
tion begins to proceed-
branching of the proton
cycle. The nucleus of the
J 4 7 atom ;He reacts with the
He + He --"Be + I' :He nucleus to form the be-
ryllium nucleus which cap-
7Be +p-!U tures an electron and is
transformed to a lithium
7Li +P ~24He
nucleus, and the lithium
nucleus, on absorbing a
T>10"'!< proton, forms :He (Fig. 21).
The energy effect is sli-
Fig. 21. Diagram of proton ghtly smaller - 25.6 MeV.
cycle
The energy of this proton
cycle is the basis of the ener-
gy balance in the Sun. The catalytic character of nuc-
lear processes is even more markedly expressed in ano-
ther cycle which occurs at very high temperatures.
This cycle is called the nitrogen-carbon cycle beca-
use in it the nuclei of nitrogen and carbon atoms play
the part of catalyzers which facilitate the reaction of
148
transformation of hydrogen to helium. The diagram of
the nitrogen-carbon cycle is shown in Fig. 22.
As can be seen, the nuclei of nitrogen isotopes of
masses 13, 14 and 15, the isotopes of oxygen of nuclear
mass 15 and isotopes of carbon of nuclear masses 12
and 13 take part in this cycle. During the work of

He

15 ~N
0
~J,y
82 $

1 4H ~*He I It.O· 10-5 erg/cycle

Fig. 22. Diagram of nitrogen-carbon cycle

this cycle positrons, neutrinos and y-quanta, i.e., short-

-wave radiation, are formed. The cycle functions at
a rate which would seem to be altogether inconceivable
..on an Earth scale. A hydrogen nucleus entering the
cycle has a chance to come out of it as a helium nucleus
in 50 million years! Not too quickly, it appears.
There is so much hydrogen in the Sun, however, that
even at this rate the work of the cycle is quite satis-
factory and the cycle plays an important role in pro-
viding the Sun with energy.
At temperatures of 108-109°K, other cyclic nuclear
reactions occur, which also playa part in supplying
the stars with energy. Such is the neon-sodium cycle
in which the isotope of neon and sodium take part as
shown in Fig. 23. The result is the same: the conversion
uf hydrogen to helium is accelerated. Can helium be
149
considered to be the final product which does not under-
go any further change, i.e., something like ash in
the nuclear furnace?
Helium is not the final product of nuclear reactions.
On the con trary, the processes in which helium nuclei

------------~--------,

Fig. 23. Diagram of neon-sodium cycle

are in vol ved initiate the synthesis of heavier nuclei.

At temperatures of 108-10 9 0K, the synthesis of vari-
ous elements takes place in the stars, and the different
stages in this synthesis determine the general physical
state of a star. Thus, it appears that in the magnificent
stellar laboratories, from hydrogen nature produces
all the elements known on the Earth.
 CHAPTER VI

Evolution of Stars
and Synthesis of Elements

1. STAGES IN THE LIFE HISTORY OF STARS

Thus, the stars twinkling in the sky are extremely

hot gaseous spheres or dense masses of matter wherein
violent reactions continually produce complex atomic
nuclei from plasma. Consequently, the life of a star
arrd that of the atom are closely related.
The problems involved in the theory of stellar
evolution cannot be considered to be solved; there
are many riddles of a chemical and physical nature
that still await their solution. The general conception
of a star's life would perhaps be even vaguer if astro-
nomers had not been able to observe stars at diffe-
rent moments in their development. It was an easier
matter to determine the sequence of the stages obser-
ved because the laws of atomic physics as well as the
laws of chemistry are the same for all parts of the
universe, and certain states of stellar matter (e.g., the
plasma state) can be simulated in laboratories on the
Earth.
It is quite probable that the initial state of stellar
matter was a cloud of gas and dust. The main compo-
nents of the cloud were hydrogen and helium. The
mutual gravitational attraction of the enormous num-
ber of particles (atoms and ions) results finally in
the appearance of forces that condense the gaseous sphe-
re. As the particles approach each other, there appears
1~i,
 another force that hinders the limitless condensation
of matter: this force is gas pressure.
Since the gravitational forces and the forces of gas
pressure are equal, the gaseous sphere (the prevalent
star type) is in a state of equilibrium. Approximate
calculation shows, for instance, that in the centre of
such a star as the Sun the gas pressure should reach
about 1010 atmospheres. Hence, since the average den-
sity of a star is equal to that of substances on the Earth,
the temperature in the centre of the Sun must at-
tain millions of degrees. According to available data,
the temperature in the interior regions of the Sun is
equal to 15 million degrees. Under such conditions all
the atoms are completely ionized. Calculation of the
temperature of a gas requires at least an approximate
knowledge of its molecular mass. For a mixture of
different particles it is enough to know the average
molecular mass.
It is known that for atoms that are not too heavy
the atomic number Z (i.e., the number of electrons in
the atom, equal to the number of positive charges in
the nucleus) is equal to about half the mass number:
Z == m/2. If the total number of electrons is denoted
as n; and the atomic mass as m, then, when ionization
is complete, there will be n , + 1 particles (one nucle-
us and n ; electrons).
The average mass of a particle will be equal to
mav = ne~1 and since m = 2Z = 2n e , then mav =
2ne 2
== ne +1 = 1 + 11ne
Hence, the average molecular mass of stellar matter
is equal to approximately two or less. If the star con-
tained only hydrogen for which Z == m == n ; == 1,
the average molecular mass of its matter would equ-
al O~5.
iaa.
 The results of these calculations would be erroneous
if the content of heavy atoms in stars were considerab-
le. But, apparently, it does not exceed 4 per cent and
is usually even less. Therefore, it is permissible to
take the average mass of stellar matter.
Calculations based on these reasonings show that
the temperature in the centre of hot luminous stars (for
example, some of the stars in the constellation of Ori-
on) equals 54,OOO,OOO°C; for cooler stars (Vega), the
temperature is equal to 18,OOO,OOO°C; for Procyon it
is "only" 8,OOO,OOO°C.
Because of the high temperature in the centre of
stars, energy is transferred from the central regions to
outlying ones by radiation, convection or conduction,
depending on the state of the star. The transfer of
energy to the outer regions of hot stars determines their
luminosity. Since radiation is responsible for the
transfer of energy in this case, the luminosity of
a star depends on its size; larger stars are more lumi-
nous because they have a larger surface to radiate
·light.
. The process of the condensation of interstellar mat-
ter and formation of the nuclei of stars occur continu-
ally. In our days, in the far-distant nebulae, for instan-
ce, in the famous Andromeda Nebula, stars are still
appearing. Opaque gaseous bodies (nuclei) can be obser-
ved on photographs of the Horsehead Nebula (Fig. 24).
Let us follow the further development of star for-
mation. Due to gravitational forces, the degree of
condensation and the temperature gradually increase.
While the temperature remains within the limit of
a thousand degrees; the reactions that take place are
ordinary chemical processes, the most important of
which are the reduction of metals, decomposition and
evaporation of unstable compounds, the formation of
radicals, etc, If tlle conglomerats mass is great, the
i53
increasing compression of the dense sphere results in
such an intense evolution of heat that nuclear reactions
begin to occur. What nuclei participate in these reac-
tIons?

Fig. 24. The Horshead Nebula in the constellation Orion. Emis-

sion of hydrogen, helium, nitrogen, carbon, oxygen is excited
by a superhot star in the vicinity of tho nebula

In general, the rate of occurrence of elements decre-

ases with increasing atomic number. Heavy elements
occur more rarely than light ones do. After the ascent
of the curve of occurrence of elements near iron (the
iron peak), there follows a descent and there are rela-
tively few nuclei with numbers exceeding 50. What
nuclei are most frequently found in outer space? The
154·
 most abundant element could be the raw material
from which other elements were formed.
I-Iydrogen is the most widespread element in outer
space! It is this element that is found in the interstel-
lar medium, in the hot masses of gas of the giant stars;
it constitutes 3/4 of our Sun; it is the emission of hydro-
gen that is always detected in the spectra of far-dis-
tant nebulae. Helium is also very widespread. It
should be observed that these two elements always
accompany each other. If, as stated above, 3/4 of the
Sun's mass is made up of hydrogen, almost 1/4 of it
is made up of helium. Helium lines accompany hydro-
gen lines in the spectra of stellar atmospheres. The
significance of the connection existing between hydro-
gen and helium was understood only after the nature
of the transformations occurring in the magnificent
laboratories of outer space was ascertained. The most
important reaction that takes place in stellar interiors
is. the formation of helium frem hydrogen, i.e., the
reaction described when considering the source of solar
energy.
As soon as the internal processes begin to proceed
violently, the stellar matter increases in volume. The
star, on expanding to a gigantic size, is naturally co-
oled down, and the temperature of its outer layers
is reduced to the relatively low value of 3000-4000 oK.
The star appears in the area of the red giants (in the
upper right-hand corner of the HR diagram). Whe-
ther the star will become a supergiant or a subgiant
depends on its mass (a mass equal to 10-15. times the
mass of the Sun is required for transformation to
a supergiant).
Having lost a large amount of matter flung out into
.outer space by the whirlwinds and storms of the nu-
clear processes, the star after using up all its hydro-
>gen begins to consume its helium. A great number of
·~:t·,

155
nuclei of new elements are produced in the star's inte-
rior. Moreover, the star having decreased its mass and
luminosity, gradually approaches the main sequence,
moving downwards on the Hertzsprung-Russel diagram.
On the way to its place in the main sequence, the
star can lose its gas envelope and other changes may
occur, especially in large stars (many times larger
than the Sun). Generally, the star moves slowly along
the main sequence during billions of years. How does
the life of a star end? It can be transformed into
a small faintly luminous yellow dwarf; this corres-
ponds to a downward shift to the right along the
main sequence. Another end is also possible.
In some cases a process of expansion of the outer
parts of the star begins: the star ejects into space enor-
mous amounts of gas, in which the conversion of hydro-
gen to helium continues taking place, and the remnant
of the star contracts. If the mass of the star is less than
that of the Sun (about 1.2 times), under certain con-
ditions contraction results in the formation of a white
dwarf - a very small but extremely dense star. The
size of dwarfs, on a stellar scale, is very small: a num-
ber of them have a diameter of only 8000 km (less than
the diameter of the Earth), but the density of a white
dwarf reaches 10 10 g/cm",
The compression of matter, as is known, is caused
by gravitational forces and, therefore, the greater the
mass of the star, the higher the effect of compression,
If the mass of a star exceeds the mass of the Sun 1.2
times, the internal pressure in it (electron-gas pressure
and radiation pressure) will no longer be able to balan-
ce the gravitational forces, and the star will begin to
contract rapidly; this results in a so-called gravitatio-
nal collapse. A collapse ends in a violent explosion,
and the stellar matter is scattered over large areas
of outer space.
t58
 A collapse may not occur; it the mass of the star
lies in the range of 1.2 to 2 times the Sun's mass, ano-
ther end is likely to occur. The stellar matter passes
over to the neutron state: with very great degrees of
compression electrons and protons can unite to form
neutral particles, neutrons. As a result of the conver-
sion to the neutron state, the density increases to even
a greater extent and reaches values of the order of
1010 g/cm 3 • It is indeed rather difficult to conceive
a density at which 1 million tons of matter is contai-
ned in 1 mm''I
A neutron star can also appear after an explosion,
i.e., after a collapse causes the violent development of
nuclear reactions and the scattering of matter. The
"nut" remaining in the centre of the exploded mass is
not nnly very hard but also very small - the diameter
of a neutron star is only a few hundred kilometres or
even a few tens of kilometres (Fig. 25).
The explosion and intense radiation that accompa-
nies it are perceived as the appearance of a supernova.
Such an explosion occurred in 1054: the Crab Nebula
presents the imposing picture of the widespread expan-
sion of the explosion products in outer space.~
..Neutron stars have magnetic fields (very strong
ones). The matter in these stars is not motionless; it
vibrates radially and otherwise; besides, the star
itself revolves as a single body. As a result, neutron
stars are sources of very intense and periodic radio
emission. At the present time, the radiation of these
so-called pulsating stars is being studied extensively.
In the Crab Nebula there is the pulsating star deno-
ted as P 0532 1 which was formed as the result of the
1 Pulsating stars are usually denoted as proposed by Eng-
lish. astronomers: the first letter indicates the place it was dis-
covered, the letter "P" indicates pulsating, the number indica-
tes the time of direct ascent. Accordingly, the first pulsating
157
 J

·..
Inier;leLla; medium com-
posed oj gas and dust
(beqinning oj ccnaensaiion)

°gf f cm3
d=10
'
4H~4tie
~O 5

Consumption oj hydrogen
fInd helium; formation of
Jt;.l.
n D ti=1~'S1//cm 3
~.-.- p+p~n

~ T~;J'10goK

'carbon and neavier atomic Ejection of cloudof.qas; conversion

nuclei J 4 He~'zC to a white dwarf, to a neutron
star or an explosion andconversion
to a supernova
Fig. 25. Schematic representation of the evolution of stars:
I - m < mS (1.2 times); II - 1.2m S < m < 2mS III - m> m S
(more than 2 times)

explosion of a supernova. There can, of course, be

other reasons for the appearance of pulsating stars",
star was denoted as CP 1919: "C" indicates that Cambridge was
the place it was discovered; 1919, the direct ascent equal to
19 h 19 min.
2 The CP 1919 pulsating star is not a powerful source of
radio emission as was previously supposed (the source is much
farther from us than the pulsating star) and it originated from
an unstable star (according to Goss and Schwartz).

158
 As a result of a collapse, sometimes such dense stars
appear that even radiation is not able to overcome their
gravitational field. Such a star, consequently, cannot
be seen; its existence is detected only by the effect it
has on its neighbours. These superdense stars, bottom-
less gravitational drains, absorb energy and matter.
They are called dark "holes". According to U. Press
they do not retain a spherical form and they pulsate,
being the source of gravitational radiation. The pnlsa-
ting star Swan 10-1 emits X-rays, the period of pul-
sation being 0.1-10 s. Swan 10-1 is considered to be
a binary star: a dark "hole" revolves around a giant
star which is at a distance of 6000 light-years from the
Earth. Like in the case of the Crab Nebula, it is a very
.powerful source of radiation. The invisible star probab-
ly has a mass equal to 2.5 solar masses and causes tidal
waves in the giant star, gradually drawing off its
atmosphere. It is possible that variation in the inten-
sity of X-ray emission is associated with this pheno-
menon.
. In the constellation Hercules an X-ray pulsating
star with a period of 1.247 s has been discovered. By
now 116 sources of X-ray emission have been registe-
r~d: 75 of them are at the equator of the Earth's galaxy
and 10 are beyond it (specifically, in the constellation
Andromeda). There are also scattered sources of radi-
ation in the constellation Coma Berenices.
The TI10re complicated the nuclear reactions, the
more difficult it is to study them theoretically and
the harder it is to simulate them in laboratories on the
tEarth. At the present time, certain nuclear processes
·~an be carried out in nuclear reactors and powerful
.eyclo trons: in the near future attempts to obtain stab-
~Je plasma and to control the thermonuclear con-
~ersion of hydrogen to helium will be made. The
~ynthesis of many heavy nuclei, however, is yet
'~ .~:
j';,

~ 159
unattainable, and this aspect of space nuclear chemistry
still remains a field of conjectures and hypotheses.
I t is supposed that it is during the explosion, in
the process of the origination of supernovae (at tempe-
ratures of the order of 3 X 10 90K), that there appears
a mixture of nuclei, protons and neutrons from which
subsequently the nuclei of iron and other heavy ele-
ments are formed'. Hence, the chemical reactions by
which iron is formed in space differ considerably from
those in which lighter elements are formed: iron atoms
are forged in extremely hot furnaces and are produced
as the result of violent processes the effect of which
extends to a great distance from the site of the explo-
sion (several light-years).
It should be noted that the development of nuclear
processes in the period of collapse is characterized by
diverse neutron capture and results in the appearance
of nuclei of a dissimilar nature. But, by far, not all
nuclei can be obtained by means of such transformati-
ons. The formation of certain elements cannot be expla-
ined by the work of neutron "furnaces" and other
hypotheses had to be worked out to explain their
appearance.
The origin of unstable nuclei such as the light
nuclei of lithium, deuterium, boron, beryllium, which
are rapidly absorbed in the nuclear reactions is also
puzzling. Nevertheless, there is evidence, for instan-
ce, that the deep-red stars contain a large amount of
lithium and in one of the blue stars an excess of the
helium isotope :He has even been found. Where do
these unstable nuclei come from? It has been assumed
that in outer space, along with "hot" synthesis of
1 At the time of an explosion of a supernova matter con-
taining heavy elements is ejected into outer space. New stars are
formed from this material and that is the reason why the con-
tent of heavy elements is high in young stars.

160
 elements, resulting from neutron reactions, there also
occurs "cold" synthesis. The masses of plasma produ-
ced, for example, as a consequence of an explosion in
some galactic system are very unstable. Electromagne-
tic fields act in them, accelerating the motion of parti-
cles the same as in cyclotrons in laboratories on the
Earth. The particles (protons, electrons, positrons,
atomic nuclei) accelerated by vigorous gas streams to
high velocities already begin to pick up speed un-
der the effect of the electromagnetic fields, and on
colliding, enter into reactions with each other. Under
these conditions nuclei of new atoms are produced not
as the result of thermonuclear processes but at much
lower temperatures. Therefore, the formation of less
stable nuclei and the synthesis of nuclei of heavy ele-
ments are possible.
According to D. Frank-Kamenetsky, the formation
of odd isotopes of lithium and boron is explained by
plasmic acceleration. The fact is that lithium with
a mass number of 7 and boron with a mass number of
-11 occur on the Earth and in meteorites in larger
amounts than the even isotopes having a mass number
equal to 6 and 10, respectively; this fact is of interest
because, as has been stated above, usually it is even
isotopes that are found more often. According to
D. Frank-Kamenetsky, lithium-7 is obtained by the
reaction
2~He ~ iLi+1I-I (a proton)
If a neutron is emitted, at first beryllium-7 is
formed and then lithium-7:
2~He -+ IBe +n
IBe+~ -+ ~Li
The carbon nucleus, on reacting with a proton, can
p,l'oduce boron-11.

11-01266 161
 'the atmosphere of young stars, as shown by spect-
ral analysis, contains more lithium than the atmo-
sphere of old stars: lithium produced in the plasmic
streams is gradually burned up in the flames of ther-
monuclear processes.

2. THE MOST IMPORTANT NUCLEAR REACTIONS

IN STARS
In the nuclear reactions proceeding in the interiors
of stars, an active part is played by protons, helium
nuclei (a-particles), and especially, by neutrons. The
initial substance for the synthesis ot all elements is
hydrogen. In the equations for nuclear reactions, strict-
ly speaking, it is not elements in the uS'uai sense of
the word nor atoms of simple substances that are invol-
ved, but the nuclei of atoms. At temperatures of mil-
lions and even billions of degrees only completely
ionized atoms can exist, and ordinary ions, atoms and
the simplest molecules are found only on the surface
of stars (including that of the Sun).
The first stage in the synthesis of elements con-
sists in the formation of helium from hydrogen. This
reaction proceeding in the proton cycle, as is known,
is one of the most important sources of stellar energy.
Subsequently, a carbon nucleus can be formed from
three helium nuclei. The reverse reaction was carried
out in Earth conditions: the carbon nucleus was broken
up into three particles. The same reaction can proceed
in a different way: first the very unstable :Be nucleus
is formed from two helium nuclei and then it reacts
with another helium nucleus to give the ~2C nucleus
and a y-quantum. The first stage of this reaction is
accompanied by the absorption of energy (95 keV)!

1 KeV is the symbol for a kiloelectronvolt equal to 108 eVe

162
 .
(S5keV) -iHe
3~_=~
4

(a,l)
12

:Be
_ _:J
-t~4HeV)
T<f9
9
°K

L:s e (a,)') ':C

~c (a, 1) ~o
-:J
C l5
80 (a,)') ~~Ne
J
L:;Ne (a, 1) f~Mg

~c +'go --.-24
~
Mg + 4H e
2
1:Si +n
16
80 +':0 ~:~P +11H

~C +'Z6C ~;~Na +1'H

Fie. 26. Principal ways of nuclear synthesis of elements in

stars
and the second stage, by the release of a comparative-
ly very high energy of 7.4 MeV.
When the carbon nuclei react with a-particles, OXY-
g~n, neon and magnesium nuclei appear, as shown in
FIg. 26.
As the helium nuclei are used up, the extent of
compression is increased and the temperature raised to
billions of degrees, there begin reactions that break
down the nuclei of carbon, neon and oxygen. These pro-
eesses result in the formation of magnesium, neon,
~~.odium, phosphorus, silicon and other elements (Fig. 26).

tt· 163
 A very important part in the synthesis of elemenis
is played by reactions induced by neutrons. Neutrons
appear in stars mainly due to reactions taking place
between a-particles and nuclei which contain a multi-
ple number of ex-particles plus one neutron. Thus, for
example, the isotope :Be has a nucleus which can for-
mally be regarded as consisting of two a-particles and
one neutron; when an a-particle acjs on this nucleus,
~2C and a neutron are obtained (it was the investigation
of this reaction that resulted in the discovery of the
neutron).
A proton reacts with the ~2C nucleus to form the
nitrogen nucleus:
IH+l~C -+ l¥N
This isotope is unstable and is very quickly trans-
formed to ~3C:
+
l~N -+ IfC+13+v
Both of these reactions are already familiar to us;
the nitrogen-carbon cycle begins with them.
But if the ~3C nucleus enters into a reaction with
a-particles, oxygen and a neutron will be obtained:
l~C+tHe=l~O+n

This reaction plays an important role in providing

a star with neutrons. Part of the neutrons, undoubted-
ly, are quickly absorbed by nitrogen nuclei:
l~N +n -+ 13C+ P
But besides the above source of neutrons there is
another source which uses neon, :~Ne, as the initial
material:
f3Ne+tHe=f~Mg+n
This neon isotope, in its turn, is formed in the ne-
on cycle from ~:Na and a proton through ~gNe and ~~Na;
164
sodium, ~:Na, as has already been stated, is formed
when two carbon nuclei collide. In this way, the
extremely hot interiors of stars are the site of the syn-
thesis of quite a number of elements and the place where
neutrons appear which give rise to further nuclear
reactions.
Neutrons, of course, are more readily absorbed by
nuclei than any other particles because they do not
carry a charge and need not overcome any repulsive
forces from the nucleus.
Reactions with neutrons of the (n, y) type produce
numerous new nuclei. Uniting successively with the
nuclei of magnesium, calcium, sulphur, etc., neutrons
form increasingly heavier nuclei. In order that the
'proper proportions of protons and neutrons be retained
in the resulting nuclei, after the absorption of one
neutron and before the absorption of the next neu-
tron, a nucleus must emit an electron, that is, undergo
v-decay.
There are, however, certain peculiarities that li-
mit the possibilites of the synthesis of heavy elements
by (n, y) reactions occurring in such stars as the red
giants. First of all, with gradual addition of neutrons,
astatine and francium are produced. These elements
do not form any stable isotopes; their nuclei, on emit-
ting ex-particles, are converted to isotopes of lead and
bismuth, and that is where the synthesis of nuclei
ends. Secondly, heavy and light isotopes of elements
are known which do not appeal' at all in the sequence
of slow reactions of the (n, 1') type and are not pro-
duced in such processes.
At very high temperatures, reactions with protons
are possible. Thus, magnesium can be converted to
aluminium:
These processes, however, cannot explain all of the
great variety of reactions of nuclear synthesis that ac-
tually occur. There has also arisen tha problem asso-
ciated with the relative abundance of elements of
the iron group.

3. INTERSTELLAR MATTER
Up to now we have been talking about the composi-
tion of stars, planets, comets, meteorites, i.e., of cele-
stial bodies. But they occupy only a tiny portion of
space. What can be detected by chemical analysis in
the boundless interstellar space? Can it be assumed
that there is nothing but vacuum between the celestial
bodies? Facts indicate that interstellar space is "popu-
lated" - there are atoms and ions of various elements
and groups of atoms with unpaired electrons, i.e.,
radicals in it. Even molecules, and rather complex ones
(for example, formaldehyde molecules!), can be found
in outer space, far from celestial bodies. There is
evidence of the presence of the radicals eN, CH, CH+,
OH, CS and the molecules H 20, CO, CoS, SiO, HeN,
CHsCN, CHaOR, HCOOH and others'.
One of the first ions to be detected in interstellar
gas was the calcium ion. Since the calcium ion is also
present in the surface gases of stars, it was rather
difficult, by means of spectral data, to distinguish the
radiation of calcium associated with a star from the
radiation of interstellar calcium. When this was accom-
plished, however, it was found that interstellar space
was literally filled in with calcium ions. The distri-
bution of calcium ions is not altogether uniform. There
1 Formamide molecules, IICONH~h have been detected in the
direction of the cloud Archer B2 and, probably, Archer A; this
is the first interstellar compound containing II, C, 0, N in one
molecule.
 are vast areas in outer space, clouds actually, where
the content of calcium is ,very high.
It ts relatively easy to detect calcium by spectrosco-
pic analysis; it is harder to discover the presence of
other elements in this way, and that is why evidence
of their existence in the interstellar medium was obta-
ined later. But, of course, the calcium ion is not there
all alone. In outer space there are scattered far and
wide, hydrogen atoms, ions of sodium, oxygen, tita-
nium, potassium atoms CH and C radicals and other
particles. The most abundant element (as concerns
distribution and concentration) is hydrogen; of all
matter contained in the interstellar medium, the
percentage of hydrogen in it is the highest.
The concentration of matter, however, is inconcei-
vaaly small. In the most perfect vacuum attained on the
Earth the density of matter is greater than that in
Table 10
Density of Interstellar Gas
Density, Density,
Substance g/cm 3 Substance g/cm 3

Rydrogen 2.7 X 10-24 Calcium 7 X 10- 28

Oxygen 2.3 X 10-26 Titanium 8 X 10- 30
Sodium 4X 10-27~ CH 2 X 10-29
Potassium 7 X 10-28 C 1.5 X 10-29

interstellar gas. Table 10 gives the density of substan-

ces in interstellar gas (according to B. Vorontsov-
Velyaminov)".
1 Interstellar space contains not only atoms, ions and radi-
cals, but also dust, i.e., relatively large particles. B. Voront-
8Ov-Velyaminov believes that the total mass of dust is, however,
smaller than that of interstellar gases.
r.~
~~. 167
 4. POSSIBILITY OF FORMATION
OF ORGANIC COMPOUNDS DUE TO ACTION
OF PROTONS IN SOLAR AND COSMIC RADIATION
The formation of organic compounds in outer space
is, apparently, associated with processes in which pro-
tons participate.
The Sun is the main source of protons in outer spa-
ce. Solar protons are subdivided into two groups: pro-
tons of the solar wind, with an energy of several kilo-
1
electronvolts (flow of 1016 em 2 -year ) and protons of
solar flares of a higher energy exceeding 0.5 MeV
Especially high-energy protons coming from some
sources beyond the solar system but within the Earth's
galaxy have an energy of 1 "HeV (109 eV). The flow
rate of these protons is low, only 108 21 . They
em -year
participate in nuclear reactions rather than in ordi-
nary chemical reactions. Generating neutrons, they
produce secondary protons (up to ten for every initial
proton), and the secondary protons, on losing their
energy, can enter into ordinary chemical reactions'.
The collision of protons and carbon atoms can
result in the synthesis of various hydrocarbons. Minute
particles of silicates, oxides, carbonates, on reacting
with protons, become the source of hydroxyl groups,
thus making further development of synthesis possible.
Of great interest are simulated experiments which were
carried out with diamond crystals exposed to the
emission of protons, deuterons and ee-part.iclcs sped

1 The effect of galactic protons, on the whole, is .so feeble

that a meteorite with a diameter of 2 m could accumulate thro-
ugh the action of these protons only a few thousandths of a per
cent by mass of hydrogen in 4 billion years.

168
upin a Van-der-Graaf accelerator to an energy of 1.8 MeV.
The target was cooled by means of liquefied nitrogen.
It was found that CH, CH 2 , CH 3 radicals and hydrocar-
bon molecules were formed. The experiments also
confirmed the assumption that hydroxyl groups were
produced on the surface of silicate particles; this pro-
ceeds very slowly and results in hydration of the
surface.

5. CHEMISTRY AND COSMOLOGY

Cosmology is the branch of astronomy that deals
with the theories of the origin and evolution of the uni-
verse. I t is quite natural that one of the central problems
of this science is the question of how hydrogen appeared
in\ outer space. This element, which in relation to
others is the parent substance, was apparently formed
as the result of an astonishing process. It is assumed
by modern cosmology that several billions of years
ago all matter in the universe was compressed to a ve-
ry great degree, and in this state it contained neutrons
stable under high compression. I t is supposed that the
temperature of this incredibly dense matter was very
-high. When the process of expansion began, the neut-
rons lost their stability and began to disintegrate to
form protons, electrons and anti-neutrons.T'rotons were
scattered in outer space and that was how hydrogen
appeared.
If the temperature had been low, it would be more
probable that a neutron combined with a proton to
form deuterium nucleus. But there is very little deute-
rium in space and, consequently, there are more gro-
unds for assuming the existence of hot primary neutrons.
The most striking evidence obtained was the discovery
in 1965 of remnants of heat radiation which accompani-
ed the hot neutrons. This relict radiation does actually
fill up all space and reminds us of the violent events
associated with the birth of hydrogen",
However" the problem of the origin of primary mat-
ter in the universe, neutrons or hydrogen, still remains
unsolved. A group of English astronomers (Bondi,
Gold, Hoyle) have even claimed that hydrogen atoms
are continuously, although very slowly, created "from
nothing"; another hypothesis assumes that primary
matter was formed due to the energy generated by the
expanding universe.
As yet there are no theoretical and experimental me-
ans of solving these colossal problems, although, in
principle, they do not seem to be unsolvable.
Progress in atomic physics and nuclear chemistry
has greatly influenced the cosmological theory, and
one of the most striking examples of this influence is
the introduction of the idea of antimatter and its
properties.
The concept of antimatter developed gradually. At
first physicists only knew about the very light negati-
ve particles, electrons, and the heavy positively-
charged nuclei containing protons. Then very light
particles having a positive charge were discovered;
they were called positrons. A positron in relation to
an electron is an anti-particle.
Progress in the field of theoretical physics of ele-
mentary particles and experimental data have also in-
dicated the existence of anti-particles in relations to
protons (anti-protons), in relation to mesons. i.e.,
particles having a number of masses between that of
the electron and proton (anti-mesons) and even in rela-
1 Recently, the presence of relict radiation- of a temperature
of 2.7°K was verified. The spectrum of the background infrared
radiation studied with the aid of a rocket (on the Hawaiian
islands) and the spectrum of an absolutely black body at a tem-
perature of 2.7°K (wavelength 0.8-6 mm) are identical.

.t70
 tion to the hardly perceptible neutrino (anti-neutrino).
All information about the world of elementary parti-
cles appears to clearly indicate the possibility of the
formation of an atom in which, instead of a positive
nucleus, there would be a negative particle and, instead
of an electron, a positive particle (positron). Consequ-
ently, in addition to ordinary hydrogen atom consi-
sting of a proton (the nucleus) and an electron, there
could exist an atom of anti-hydrogen in which a posi-
tron revolves around a nucleus (anti-proton).
What would happen if an atom collided with an
anti-atom and the particles got a chance to react with
each other? It is well known that the reaction of an
electron and positron produces two y-ray photons, and
that the collision of a proton and anti-proton produces
intermediate particles, mesons and anti-mesons, which
in turn give electrons, positrons, then v-quanta and
streams of neutrinos and anti-neutrinos. In all these
processes Einstein's mass-energy equivalence is obser-
ved; i.e., if a mass equal to m disappears, an energy
equal to mc 2 appears in its place. For this reason, the
reaction between atoms and anti-atoms must proceed
in the form of a violent explosion. The reaction must
.be accompanied by the release of a vast amount of
energy.
Nothing hinders us from assuming that, together
with Tour galactic system, somewhere in outer space
there exists another world, other galactic systems
entirely made up of anti-matter. The chances of for-
mation of usual atoms or those in which everything is
"just the opposite" are equal. Why shouldn't a mysteri-
ous anti-world exist in the depths of outer space?
Contact between such a world and ours would be equal-
ly dangerous for the inhabitants of both"worlds: we
would all instantly be converted to streams of photons,
I,e. t y-quanta!
 Is all this actually possible? Is there any proof that
this reasoning goes beyond the limits of scientific
fantasy which can neither be confirmed nor denied?
Anti-matter does actually exist. Recently, Soviet
scientists obtained anti-helium and studied its properti-
es. Hence, there is nothing unusual in the develop-
ment of cosmological theories based on the assumption
that anti-matter participated in the creation of the
universe.
S. Alfven and O. Klein have developed the concept
of the origin of the universe from a dispersed cloud of
matter in which atoms and anti-atoms were distribu-
ted evenly. The average distance between them in
those far-distant times was so great that collisions
occurred very rarely and had no catastrophic conse-
quences. Gravitational forces gradually compressed
the primary cloud, increasing its density. When the
diameter of the cloud reached a value of about 1 billion
light-years, the interaction between the atoms and
anti-atoms already became so frequent that the tempe-
rature of the cloud increased and it was transformed
to an extremely large mass of ionized particles, biplasm.
The term "hiplasm" signifies that the plasmic mass
contained ordinary ions and those obtained from anti-
atoms. The violent reactions of the interaction of both
kinds of ions was accompanied by the release of an
enormous amount of energy and powerful radiation.
The radiation pressure gave rise to forces which strove
to expand the cloud.
On expanding, as a result of causes still not fully
ascertained (among them an important role is played
by magnetic forces), the biplasm cloud separated into
two clouds: one consisting of ordinary ions and
atoms, which subsequently became our world, and
another one consisting of anti-atoms and anti-molecu-
les, the mysterious anti-world about which we know

172
nothing as yet. it is possible that between these wor-
lds there is some kind of transitional zone in which
interaction between particles and their antipodes takes
place. Sources of powerful radiation must appear in
the intermediate zone, indicating that destruction of
particles and anti-particles occurs there. Astronomy
knows and has registered sources of very strong radia-
tion far from our galaxy, the origin and nature of
which remain unexplained. It is hard to assert with
certainty whether the combustion of matter and
anti-matter occurs there, but there are, in principle,
no grounds for rejecting this hypothesis.
 CHAPTER vii

Primary Synthesis of Organic

Compounds

t. PHYSICAL FACTORS WHICH AFFECT SYNTIIESIS

However great the role of nuclear reactions in the

general chemical activity in outer space, at low tempe-
ratures, nuclear processes are discontinued and are rep-
laced by atomic and molecular reactions. Atoms fin-
ding themselves in cold regions of space put on their
electron "overcoats", i.e., recover their lost electron
shells and acquire the ability of combining with each
other to form molecules. There is no doubt that ordina-
ry chemical reactions, in all their diversity, are con-
tinuously taking place in celestial bodies and in the
interstellar medium.
The analysis of carbonaceous chondrites disclosed
the presence of various organic compounds which were
formed in outer space.
Radiation could be the factor responsible for the
origination of rather complex molecules from atoms,
ions and radicals. Outer space is permeated by all kinds
of radiation. This includes streams of protons and
electrons; radiation of ultraviolet and y-ray quanta;
emission of neutrinos, heavy ions, etc. All these
emissions can, to a greater or smaller degree, be the
cause of ordinary and nuclear chemical reactions.
Unfortunately, most frequently it is not known in
what way the synthesis of organic compounds proceeds
in the meteorites and asteroids wandering in space for
t74
 mll1ions of years. 'I'he only way to solve the problem
is to attempt to simulate certain processes, i.e., to
expose the supposed initial substance to some parti-
cular radiation and to see what will come of it - just
what compounds are formed in the model system. This
·method, in spite of its shortcomings (the short durati-
on of exposure to radiation as compared to the cosmic
period of irradiation) turned out to be very promising.
Of special interest are the results obtained on simulat-
ing the processes in the Earth's atmosphere.
I t should be pointed out, first of all, that the po-
werful corpuscular emissions (e.g., streams of pro-
tons) characteristic of cosmic rays induce nuclear
reactions; they are too strong the "delicate" chemical
reactions. It is the Earth's atmosphere that bears the
foree of the high-energy cosmic particles, and their
energy is dissipated on piercing through the armour of
air. Ultraviolet radiation is an important factor of
chemical synthesis in the lower layers of the atmosphe-
_re. Other factors are atmospheric electric discharges,
i.e., local currents of electrons and ions of short dura-
tion. The radioactive decay of elements that are pre-
. .t in the Earth's crust also plays a part, although
.nerally a considerably smaller one; certainly the
temperature indirectly associated with processes of
decay of radioactive substances is very important for
the synthesis of organic compounds.
We'll confine ourselves to a review of the results
of experiments designed to ascertain just what organic
compounds could have been produced on the Earth
in those far-distant times when there was not as yet
any life on it, i.e., approximately 2.5 billion
:" years ago.
::.t,' First of all we must familiarize ourselves with the
:;~;.general laws of the effect of light on matter.
.>: .

~~~.; 175
 2. ACTION OF LIGHT ON MATTER
The effect of light on matter is constantly observed
by us. Our skin grows darker when exposed to the
Sun (gets sunburned or tanned); the prolonged action
of sunlight causes many colours to fade; the wonderful
process of photosynthesis takes place in plants under
the action of sunlight. Chemists know chemical pro-
cesses the rate of which changes sharply due to the acti-
on of light. In photographing, the products resulting
from the reduction of sil vel' halides appear on the
photographic plate in hundredths of a second; a mixtu-
re of chlorine and hydrogen reacts very slowly in the
dark, but if it is exposed to a ray of sunlight for just one
moment, an explosion of great force occurs.
Even a superficial knowledge of the principal laws
of atomic physics is enough to understand the processes
that occur in the branch of science known as photoche-
mistry, i.e., the science that studies the reactions of
light and matter. Light as has been noted above has
a dual nature: sometimes it behaves like a wave and
sometimes like a particle (a quantum or photon).
Not only the photon, but all atomic particles, in gene-
ral, have a dual wave-particle nature; under certain
conditions they exhibit effects explicable only as
wave phenomena. Nevertheless, usually a distinction
is made between the interaction of matter and electro-
magnetic waves (visible light, ultraviolet rays, infra-
red rays) and the interaction of matter and atomic
particles (electrons, protons, ex-particles and the high-
energy v-quanta). The term "photochemistry" in this
case .refers to the action of electromagnetic waves, whe-
reas processes in vol ving particles (corpuscular radia-
tion) are studied in radiation chemistry. In the condi-
tions of outer space both photochemical and radiation
processes occur, and therefore we must become famili-
ar with both types of reactions.
176
 An electron orbiting a nucleus in the ground state
can, on absorbing a quantum of energy, either pass to
an excited orbit farther from the nucleus or escape from
the atom. Which of the above two things will occur in
a given case depends on the magnitude of the quantum
of energy. If the quantum is great enough to cause the
electron to escape from the atom, ionization will take
place. Ionization and excitation are the most impor-
tant results of the collision of a photon and an atom.
In the general case, not all of a given quantum may
be absorbed; then as a result of ionization, there will
appear an ion, electron and a quantum of less energy
(the Compton effect). This occurs, however, only at
.very high quantum energies (0.1-1 MeV); at low ener-
gies only excitation or ejection of electrons occur.
Thus, when light, for example, acts on the silver iodide
contained in the light-sensitive coating ofa photograp-
hic plate or film, the electron in the iodine ion leaves
its host (iodine) and is transferred to the silver ion:

hV+Ai+-~-
. --+- Ag+I
The resulting silver atoms form small accumulations

E which metallic silver will be deposited in the pro-

ss of subsequent treatment with a developer, thus
.producing the negative image.
A light quantum making its way into a mixture of
.,hydrogen and chlorine photoexcites the chlorine mole-
'eule as a result of which the bond between the two
-ehlorine atoms in the Cl 2 molecule is broken and active
CI atoms having free (unpaired) electrons 'appear:
C1 2+hv=2Cl
It is these atoms that on reacting with hydrogen
;.;J.Ilolecules produce active hydrogen atoms:
~., Cl+H 2=HCl+H
~~.

~/2 12-01266 177

 Then the following reaction takes place:
ll+C1 2 = Cl+ HCI
and chlorine atoms reappear, sustaining a rapid chain
reaction which results in an explosion of the whole
mixture.
Subsequently, the chain process proceeds by itself,
independent of the primary event which consists in
the absorption of one quantum by one chlorine molecu-
le; the subsequent process is a secondary one.
According to Einstein's law, one absorbed quantum
causes the conversion of one molecule. In complex mole-
cules, light sometimes not only causes an electron to
pass to an excited state but also changes its spin (i.e.,
causes a change in the direction of the angular momen-
tum which is associated with the rotation of the elec-
tron on its own axis). As a result, a molecule is obta-
ined with two electrons, one of which is in the excited
state, the other in the ground state, but both having the
same spin. Two electrons with the identical spins can-
not occupy one and the same orbit (Pauli exclusion
principle) and, therefore, such a molecule remains in
the excited state for a long time because the electron
cannot return from the excited state to the ground state.
This state is called the triplet state; it is characteri-
zed by high chemical activity.
At the low temperatures on the surface of planets,
in particular, of the Earth, complex organic molecules
began to originate; they were constantly exposed to
solar radiation, and the chemical evolution which led
to the appearance of life on the Earth was undoubtedly
associated with the formation of excited triplet states.
Under certain conditions light is capable of uniting
relatively simple molecules to form more complex ones.
Thus, light can form one molecule from two molecules
denoted as RN (where R is a hydrocarbon radical) by
178
 combining two radicals:
light+2RH -+ 2H+R-R
In this reaction hydrogen generally combines with
atmospheric oxygen to form water.
On the other hand, light often decomposes molecu-
les. Light quanta, for instance, dissociate acetaldehyde
molecules into two radicals (groups with unpaired
alectrons) :
CH 3CHO+light -+ CH 3+CHO
Then follows a process as a result of which a chain
reaction is developed:
eRO ~ H+CO
CH3 + CH 3 CHO ~ CH~+CH3+CO
+
CH 3CHO + H~ H2 CH3CO
2CH 3 -+ CzII6
When analyzing the probable composition of the
atmospheres of planets and the formation of certain

.d
carbon compounds in meteorites, the various reactions
into which organic compounds enter when being expo-
to the action of light must be taken into account.
~ight participates especially vigorously in processes
-of oxidation by oxygen; in these reactions peroxides
and hydroperoxides (containing the characteristic-
o - 0 - groups) are obtained, which promote the
development of oxidizing chain reactions. Light can
also induce hydrolytic dissociation (the transformation
of amino acids to hydroxy acids), the reconstruction of
the skeleton of a molecule, reactions in which addition
to double bonds occurs, etc.
Thus, we see that the streams of light quanta sent
by the Sun and other stars are powerful means of in-
fluencing chemical reactions. When discussing the
effect of light on matter in the period when the Earth
12* 179
was young and there was still no life on it, it is essen-
tial to ascertain the role of photochemical reactions
in the processes of origination of the organic compounds
which were later involved in the life cycle. There are
no molecules that are more complex and more finely
organized than those which are the basis of life. When
regarding inanimate nature, the first impression form-
ed on looking around us is that there are few carbon
compounds present and those that do occur - carbon
dioxide, hydrocarbons (petroleum, petrol, kerosene,
polyethylene) - do not resemble proteins or amino
acids. Perhaps in some distant period of the Earth,
there was an abundance of proteins and all that was
necessary for life on its surface and then for some rea-
son or other they disappeared. This hypothesis is bene-
ath criticism. There are no grounds for believing that
complex fragments which form cells were produced
by some process and then combined at once in such
a way that a system capable of living was obtained.
On the other hand, however, observations and
experimental data afford evidence in favour of the
hypothesis that molecules gradually became more and
more complex; as a result of this process, some primary
forms of life were produced, perhaps not very similar
to present-day f01111s. However, there is no doubt that
the basic chemical transformations in these prototypes
of future organisms were the same as those in contem-
porary ones.
The material from which molecules of biological
value were built did actually exist in abundance on
the Earth. The impression that nature is poor in
organic compounds is not altogether true.
A. Oparin was the first to state with certainty that
the process of conversion of simple compounds to
compounds of biological value was a process of gradual
evolution; somewhat later the same opinion was expres-
180
sed by D. Holdane. In our days the overwhelming
majority of biochemists and biologists share this point
of view. It has been proved that the most important
compounds required for sustaining and developing
life could be produced on the Earth as a result of di ver-
se reactions. The reactions which initiated the long
chain of transformations creating the conditions on the
Earth for the appearance of the first forms of life
proceeded comparatively readily. Light is not the only
source of energy that stimulated these reactions.

3. RELATIVE ROLE OF VARIOUS ENERGY SOURCES

IN SYNTHESIS OF PRIMARY ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
In order to estimate the relative role of various
energy sources of importance in primary chemical
evolution on the Earth, 1\1. Calvin calculated the
average quantity of energy obtained by the Earth's
surface each year from various processes. It was found,
for example, that as the result of volcanic activity the
Earth receives about 0.04 X 1020 cal/year; lightnings
give 0.05 X 1020 cal/year; at the present time the
decay of radioactive potassium provides 0.3
X 1020 cal/year (2.6 billion years ago this process yiel-
ded 4 times as much energy); ultraviolet radiation
(of a wavelength less than 200 nm) brings 4.58
X 1020 cal/year. M. Calvin also pointed out the part
that might be played by impacts of meteorites which
are a source of energy acting from the beginning of
the Earth's existence and which give about 0.5
X 1020 cal/year. These figures show that the greatest role
in the generation of energy is played by ultraviolet
radiation.
Neither should radioactive decay be overlooked;
such radiation in the prebiological period must have
occupied the second place after ultraviolet radiation.
181
 Since 1950 a fairly large number of simulated ex-
periments have been performed. Scientists, simulating
the Earth's atmosphere as it existed in distant geologi-
cal periods, exposed a chosen mixture to the action of
various factors. In 1950, Calvin and his co-workers
exposed a mixture containing water and carbon dioxide
to the action of a stream of helium ions of an energy
equal to 40 MeV in a cyclotron under a partial pressure
of CO2 equal to 2.4-2.9 mm Hg. Bivalent iron ions
were added to the solution being irradiated. After
irradiation formic acid and formaldehyde were found
in the solution.
In 1952, S. Miller studied the effect of radiation on
a mixture containing methane, ammonia, water and
hydrogen; later in 1953, he investigated the action of
electrical discharges on similar mixtures. In his layout
a stream of water vapours passed continuously between
two electrodes. The resulting slightly volatile compounds
were condensed together with steam in a reflux conden-
ser, and the concentration of the reacton products gra ..
dually increased in the mixture in the flask. The
test lasted for a long time, a whole week, but on
a geological scale this period of time can be considered
to be a moment. And in such a "moment", an appreci-
able amount of hydrogen cyanide, aldehydes and ami-
no acids was formed in the mixture. Alanine, glycine,
~-alanine, aspartic acid, aminobutyric acid, formic acid,
acetic acid and other compounds were found in the mix-
ture. As the experiment proceeded, the concentration
of ammonia decreased while that of HCN at first
increased. As the concentration of the amino acids
grew, that of HCN began to fall gradually and in
160 hours already approached zero. The amount of
aldehydes reached a maximum in 75 hours; then
aldehydes began to disappear gradually.

182
 The sequence of reactions in the synthesis of amino
and hydroxy acids, according to Miller, is as follows:
CHi+H2°-.HCHO (HeN, NH7 NH 2-CH2-CN (H;o)
I" I -+ NH2-CH2COONH4
~ ~(H) i Ammonium salt or glycine

eRa +CHO-+CH 3CHO (N

H
3,
H
ex, H 6 CH3 -
2)
CH (NH 2)COOH
Methyl Formyl
radical radical
I
~ (HeN)
Alanine

CII 3-CHOH-CN (H;o) CH3-CHOH~COOH

An important part in these reactions, as is seen, is

played by formaldehyde and hydrogen cyanide. Atten-
tion should also be paid to the part played by methyl
and formyl radicals, active groups with unpaired elec-
trons. The hydrogen atoms (H) are also radicals which
combine to form H 2 molecules.
M. Calvin believes that among the primary com-
ponents of the Earth's atmosphere in the prebiological
period, those that should be named first are water (in
the form of vapours), the oxides of carbon (CO and CO2 ) ,
hydrogen, methane and ammonia. It was from these
components that the more complex molecules were
formed: hydrogen cyanide, HCN; dicyanamide, HNCN 2 ;
formic acid, HCOOH; formaldehyde, HeRO; glycolal-
dehyde, CH 2 0 H - CH O; and acetic acid, CHaCOOH.
Subsequently, the composition of molecules became
more complex and there appeared succinic acid,
HOOC (CH2)2COOH, and the amino acids: glycine,
CH 2(NH 2)COOH; alanine, CH sCH(NH 2)COOH;. aspar-
tic acid, HOOC-CH 2-CH(NH 2)COOH and hydroxy
acids.
P. Eeibelson studied various mixtures of nitrogen
and hydrogen, carbon dioxide, water vapours, carbon

189
monoxide, ammonia and found amino acids in the
reaction products. The Soviet scientists A. Pasynsky
and his co-workers and also N. Dodonov and A. Sido-
rova and others showed that ultraviolet radiation is
the factor that could have caused the formation of
amino acids from such substances as ammonia, water,
formaldehyde, ethane, etc. It has been established
by the Indian scientist K. Bakhadur that molybdenum
oxide acts as a catalyzer in the formation of amino
acids from water, nitrogen and paraformaldehyde.
O. Shmeleva, T. Petrova and L. Nikolaev found that
ferric hydroxide can catalyze the reaction of the for-
mation of amino acids under similar conditions. It is
known that other factors (X-rays, ionizing irradiation,
ultrasonic vibration and even heating) also favour the
formation of amino acids.
When ascertaining the part played by corpuscular
radiation in the synthesis of primary compounds,
M. Calvin exposed a mixture containing ammonia,
methane and hydrogen (the latter taken in excess) to
electron bombardment. Something like that could have
occurred in ancient times when the source of electrons
in the Earth's crust was the potassium isotope of
atomic mass 40. In the experiments carried out by
M. Calvin and his collaborators, a great number of di-
verse and rather complex compounds were obtained,
among which were adenine, aspartic acid, glycine,
lactic acid and derivatives of imidazole. Thus, it was
firmly established that amino acids are not rare sub-
stances; on the contrary, they are readily formed as
a result of a great variety of reactions that occurred
in prebiological times. Nature created forms of life
not from unusual, rare materials but from those that
were frequently formed as a result of natural processes.
Amino acids and hydroxy acids are not, by far,
the only organic compounds that occur in a great vari-
ety in nature, primarily in the tissues of animals and
plants. How did molecules of complex cyclic structure
and containing specific combinations of nitrogen,
phosphorus and carbon compounds come to be formed?
Some of them, for instance, nucleic acids, which play
an important part in protein synthesis, appear to be
of an unusually intricate structure. They are very
large molecules in which units consisting of carbohyd-
rate residues and phosphoric acid radicals are combined
with a purine or pyrimidine base (adenine, cytosine,
guanine, uracil). How did all this originate "by itself'?
Direct simulated experiments have shown that sim-
plicity and complexity are very relative concepts.
Sometimes very complex molecules are formed under
comparatively simple conditions which are easily
attained.
The synthesis of adenine, a purine derivative, can
illustrate this:
,
NHs
C N
rf 'c/ \H
b 8 //
H/ " / "NI
N
H
It was found that this compound can be formed from
hydrogen cyanide:
5CHN -+ adenine
The scientist Oro studied this type of synthesis in
great detail and proposed a scheme in which ammonia
and hydrocyanic acid react to form the intermediate
compound acrylonitrile, N ==C - CH = CH - NH 2 •
The amount of hydrocyanic acid and ammonia present

13-01266 185
in the Earth's atmosphere in the prebiological period
was great enough and, consequently, the origin of
adenine and similar compounds on the Earth's surface
was quite possible.
Other compounds of equal importance are the
derivatives of pyrimidine. These compounds also have
cyclic molecules and each cycle contains two nitrogen
atoms in the meta position. The derivatives of pyrimi-
dine include thymine, cytosine, uracil and their deriva-
tives. Pyrimidine bases could, apparently, be formed
from aminoacrylonitrile (or its derivatives), water or
ammonia and urea, co (NH 2)2. Aminoacrylonitrile, as
stated above, is synthesized from ammonia and hydro-
cyanic acid. Urea is obtained from carbon dioxide
and ammonia. Oro presumed that uracil could be for-
med from these substances according to the following
scheme:

I3-Amino-
acrylonitrile Uracil
Purines and pyrimidines absorb light of wavelengths
of about 2600 A; according to data obtained, such
radiation could have penetrated through the primary
atmosphere of the Earth, and, consequently, must
have had some effect on the resulting purine and pyri-
midine molecules. The absorption of light frequently
does not cause molecules to disintegrate but rather
excites them: the molecules become more active and
186
enter more readily into various reactions. Hence,
organic bases will be more reactive when exposed to
light. It is worthwhile to ascertain, for example, what
compounds are obtained from purine in solutions con-
taining" besides purine, other substances with which
purines are combined in living organisms.
Nucleic acids contain compounds consisting of an
organic base, carbohydrate and phosphate. These com-
pounds are called nucleotides. For instance, a compound
consisting of the base adenine, ribose and phosphate
is called "adenosine-nucleotide".
At first sight it seems hardly probable that such
a compound could, by itself, be formed from simple
compounds. However, experiments performed by the
scientists Sagan, Ponamperuma and Mariner have
shown that on exposing a mixture of phosphate, adenine
and ribose to light a nucleotide is actually formed.
Merely exposure to ultraviolet rays, which of course
were quite plentiful in the prebiological period, was
sufficient to induce the formation of very complex
molecules I
As concerns adenine, this compound is also formed
from comparatively simple molecules.
The problem of the origin of carbohydrates needed
to obtain nucleotides is likewise solved simply. It has
been proved that in alkaline solutions of formaldehyde
30 different kinds of carbohydrates are formed under
the catalytic action of alkalies and oxides of metals.
Phosphates are widespread in the Earth's crust (in
minerals, soil and water). Hence, all the constituents
of nucleic acids (base, carbohydrate, phosphate) could
easily have been formed and then combined in the
proper way under the conditions that prevailed on the
Earth before the appearance of life on it.
Of special interest is the question concerning the
conditions under which the first proteins were formed.
is· 181
s. Fox came to the conclusion that amino acids, under
the influence of various factors, could have been con-
verted to polypeptides in heated volcanic soils and in
this way might have initiated the synthesis of protein-
like substances. In order to verify these assumptions
S. Fox and his collaborators heated a mixture of dry
amino acids in a suitable vessel (this was simply a piece
of lava with a small depression in it) in an oven where
a temperature of 1700 C was maintained. In a few
hours the mixture of amino acids was transformed into
a viscous mass of the colour of amber. After that a 1 per
cent hot sodium chloride solution was poured on the
lava and the resulting polymer.
On analyzing the solution it was found that it
contained a great number of spherical particles (mic-
rospheres) consisting of products of condensation of
amino acids, i.e., of a substance similar to proteins
(Fig. 27). The protein-like substance consisted of
18 amino acids (sometimes fewer) and was called
a proteinoid - which means resembling a protein.
When carrying out the reaction in a polyphosphoric acid
solution at the relatively low temperature of 1000 C
during 150 hours, S. Fox obtained a proteinoid which
differed in composition from that of the initial mixtu-
re: it consisted of 33 per cent aspartic acid, 17 per cent
glutamic acid, and 3 per cent each of other amino acids.
S. Fox came to the conclusion that proteinoid molecules
are formed from amino acids not as the result of
chance combinations but in accordance with certain
selective principles.
Proteinoids aroused great interest and were care-
fully studied. It was found that they are capable of
forming membranes and sacs (pouch-like cavities),
and that individual microspheres united to form chains
and more complex compounds. It is the opinion of
S. Fox that the zones of volcanic activity could have
188
been the site of prirnary synthesis of proteinoids. Rains
washed these compounds away and carried them to

.', '~

Fig. 27. Photograph of proteinoids (from a paper by S. Fox)

shallow rivers or seas where, in all probability, the

subsequent processes of formation of more cornplex pro-
teionoid structures took place.
Recently, M. Calvin has analyzed in detail a number
of probable reactions that might have led to the for-
mation of various biologically active substances. He
emphasized, in particular, the role of autocatalytic
processes responsible, for example, for the production
of hemoglobin, in which heme acts as the catalyzer
in the oxidation of the initial substances.
t89
 4. PRINCIPAL TYPES OF CHEMICAL PROCESSES
IN SPACE
A resume of the characteristic transformations of
matter in space shows that different processes develop
in it, depending on the temperature and pressure. On
comparing the reactions which occur at very high
degrees of compression and extremely high kinetic
energies of particles with those that occur at low tem-
peratures and densities, the following most important
types of processes can he distinguished.
1. Pressures equal billions of atmospheres. Densi-
ties reach 1015_1016 g/cm" (according to V. Ambart-
sumyan and G. Saakyan). Nucleons react with each
other; the cores of nucleons are pressed to one another.
Mesons and hyperons appear, resulting in the origi-
nation of hyperon stars; particle - anti-particle pairs
may appear (according to D. Frank-Kamenetsky).
The hyperon stars can explode scattering matter over
great areas.
2. Densities equal 1012-1016 g/cm 3 • Protons are
converted to neutrons. Neutron stars appear. (An explo-
sion resulting in the formation of a neutron star was
observed in 1954-1958 and registered in the Mount
Palomar observatory.)
3. Densities equal 108-1010 g/cm 3 • Such are the
densities in white dwarfs. All the atoms are "crushed"
and an electron gas surrounds the atomic nuclei. The
gravitational forces are balanced by the pressure of
the electron gas.
In some respects, these conditions are similar to those
supposed to exist in the centre of the planet Jupiter,
where metallized hydrogen is probably found. In gene-
ral, the loss of electrons by atoms and the formation of
a common electron cloud is characteristic of the metal-
lic state. Very high temperatures correspond, to these
tOO
very great pressures. That is why no molecules in the
ordinary sense of this word are formed under such
conditions.
4. Densities are of the order of 10 g/cm 8 • This is
the density of matter! on the planets. At low tempera-
tures a great variety of compounds can be formed. The
density of matter! on the Sun is, on the average, about
1.4 g/cms• At high temperatures only the simplest
combinations of atoms - radicals of the type of eN,
C2 , Cs or molecules of stable oxides (Ti0 2 ) - can e.xist.
Ions are readily formed, and the atoms lose not only
their outer electrons but part of the inner ones as well.
5. Densities are very low. Such are the densities
of Interstellar matter. Ions exist in it for a long time;
the speed with which they move is often very great
(their motion is accelerated by the magnetic fields
of celestial bodies). When they collide, nuclear reac-
tions can occur. On the other hand, at low temperatu-
res, the action of radiation and high-energy particles
can result in the synthesis of complex molecules in-
cluding various organic compounds. Solidified syn-
thesis products, for example, form the ices contained
in the nuclei of comets.
At high temperatures and low densities (e.g., in
the surface gases of stars and in the red giants) the
atoms are, to a great. extent, ionized; radicals of
a simple structure are also formed.
6. Moderate densities (1-10 g/cm") and temperatu-
res (from -80 to +55 0 C) prevail. If there is adequate
protection against powerful cosmic rays, a successive
chain of reactions is developed, resulting in the for-
mation 0.1 organic molecules which finally become the
constituents of self-regulating systems. The life of
these systems is not only maintained by various sub-

1 In the centre it is about 100 g/cm3•

191
stances found in their surroundings, but the systems
are reproduced so that their mass and number will
increase. For unknown reasons, processes set in which
make the systems more complex although their che-
mical composition remains almost unchanged. The
systems assume mechanical functions, their recombi-
nation mechanism is perfected, they adapt themselves
better to their environment and they themselves even
al ter it. It is~ of course, the origin of life on Earth
that is spoken of here. The problems of chemistry are
closely interwoven here with those of biology. One of
the most interesting problems posed before man is to
ascertain the scope of and the laws governing biologi-
cal phenomena in space.
But meanwhile... space chemistry is taking its
first steps. It would have been impossible to under-
stand the physical nature of the processes characteri-
stic of outer space if "Earth" physics and chemistry
had not afforded potent means of theoretical research
and apparatus which have made it possible to penetra-
te into the depths of time and space. Rapid and un-
precedented progress awaits this science in the nearest
future.
 INDEX

Accelerators, 143, 169 Beta particles, 131

Achondrites, 37, 40 Bohr's theory, 16
Alpha particles, 132, 135, Bolometer, 33-34
137, 143, 164, 168 Boyle's law, 99
Amino acids, 31, 34, 46, Brightness, 107-108
180, 183, 184, 188
Antimatter, 170-172
Anti-particles Carbon scale, 130
anti-meson, 170 Catalyzer, 101, 184, 189
anti-neutrino, 131, 170 Celestial bodies, analysis of
anti-proton, 170 direct chemical, 12
positron, 133, 170 radio-wave, 21-22
Appolo, 10, 12 spectral, 15
Asteroids, 52, 53, 174 see also Comets, Meteorites,
chondrite, 66 Planets, Stars
Astronomy, 21, 53, 123, 151, Chemical elements in space
169, 173 abundance of, 154-155
radioastronomy, 120 synthesis of
Astrophysics, 10, 21, 53, 76, cold, 161
125 hot, 160
Atmospheres, see under na- Chemical processes in space,
mes of planets 11, 94-106, 129
Atom principal types of, 190-192
size of, 129 nuclear, 174
states of, ordinary, 174
excited, 17, 18, 137, 178 Chemical reactions
ground, 17, 178 equili bri urn of, 61-62
transition of, 22 nuclear, 99, 1.05, 132, 138,
Atomic nucleus, 132, 133, 135 154
constituents of, 129-132 in stars, 162-166
Atomic number, 131, 152 ordinary, 99, 106~ 132, 138 t
Atomic ph¥sics t 16-17t 170 t53
tN
 radioactive, 137 chemosphere, 70
work of, 61-62 hydrosphere, 69, 74, 76
Chondrites, 37, 39, 40 lithosphere, 69, 74
carbonaceous, 33, 34, 41-46, crust, 74, 75, 76
174 mantle, 74
Chondrules, 39 life, origin and evolution
Chromatography, 29-33, 43, of, 68, 71, 192
46, 85 Earthquakes, 77
Collapse, .156, 160 Effect
Comets, 127-128 energy, 105, 138
coma, 128 photo, 145
core (nucleus), 128, 191 thermo, 100-103
head, 128 Einstein's
ices, 128, 191 equati on of mass-energy
radicals in, 128 equivalence, 105, 137,
tail, 127 146, 171
Compton effect, 177 law of photochemical equi-
Computers, 63-65 valence, 121, 178
Constellati ons theory of relativity, 10
Andromeda, 159 Electric fields, 96, 132, 134
Coma Berenices, 159 Electron, 16, 163, 130, 131,
Hercules, 159 134
Orion, 153 unpaired, 102, 177
Sagittarius, 117 Electron shell, 174
Scorpi 0, 123 Elementaoy particles
Cosmic properties of, 132-134
dust, 24, 42, 167 see under names of particles
matter on Earth, 24 and also Anti-particles
rays, 39, 73, 74, 168 Energy,
Cosmology, 72, 169-173 activation, 100, 135
Coulomb barrier, 136 binding, 139, 140
excitation, 140, 177
kinetic, 138
pe Broglie, 17 radiant, 107
Deuterium, 42, 139, 147, 160, solar, 145-150
169 sources. nuclear, 136-140
Deutron, 135, 139, 142
Dlelectric constant, 22
Doppler effect, 21, 122
Dwarfs, 94
subdwarfs, 109, 115,116,125 Fluorometry, 35
white, 109, 124, 190 Forces
yellow, 156 gas pressure, 152
Earth, 68-77 gravitational, 25, 114, 122,
atmosphere, 68, 69, 70, 77 152, 156

t94
 repulsive, 136 radiation of, 18
Fraunhoffer lines, 13, 58 ultraviolet, 17
visible, 17
Luminosity, 108, 109
Galaxy, 73, 96, 107, 124 Lunar soil samples, see Moon

Hertzsprung-Russel diagram, Magnetic fields, 7, 96, 114, 132

109-112 Magnitude, absolute, 107
Hyperons, 190 Main sequence (of stars), 111
Mars, 15, 25, 66, 80, 82-86
life on, 68, 84-86
Interplanetary stations, auto- Mass defect, 146
matic, 9 Mass-energy equivalence, see
American Einstein s equation
Mariner, 83 Mass number, 152
Pioneer, 12 Matter in outer space
Surveyor, 10 effect of high pressure, 97-
future, 9 99
Soviet effect of high temperature,
Luna, 12, 13, 78 100-103
Mars, 12, 1.3, 82 origin, 170
Venera, 12, 64, 67 plasmic state of, 103-106
Interstellar matter, 11., 53, Megatherium, 27
i66-167 Mendeleev's periodic system;
Ionization, 103, 130, 177 131
Isotopes, 36, 48, 73, 74, 76, Mercury, 66, 67
149, 160, 161 Mesons, 134, 190
<,.,r. Metallic state, 190
Meteorites, 12, 37-53
Jditer, 12, 15, 25, 66. 86. abundance of elements in,
87-93 41
age, 39, 48
analysis of, 29-31
Kirchhoff, 13 composition, 37, 43
Kont, 14 diamonds in, 30-32
cosmic origin of, 26
craters
Life on Earth and other Arizona (Canyon Diablo),
planets, 84, 89, 192 27, 51 .
Li ht Sikhote-Alin, 28
~ual nature, 16, 121, 122 occurrence, 25, 27, 28, 37,
effect on matter, 176-181 49-51
infrared, 17 properties, magnetic, 37
pressure, 120-122, 124 showers, 27

.95
 swarm, 25 Nucleons, 131, 136, 143, 190
types, 25, 37 Nucleotides, 187
Model (simulated) experi- Nucleus
ments, 45, 82, 85, 86, 89, atomic, see above
121, 159, 168, 175, 182, comet, 128
184, 185, 187, 188 compound, 136, 140
Molecular mass, 152 states, 136
Momentum stellar, 153
angular, 22 target, 135, 136
photon, 122 denotation of, 140
MOOD, 66, 77, 82
soil samples from, 10, 12,
15, 36, 78-81 Observatory
anorthosites, 79 flying, 8
apparatus for anal y- Palomar, 190
zing, 36 ~ Orbit, 16, 17
regolith, 78, 80 Orbital, 17
Organic compound in outer
space, 168-169
Nebula, 15, 53, 124 primary synthesis,'174-189
Andromeda, 153 . energy sources, 187-189
Archer (A, B2), 166 factors affecting, 174-
Crab, 126, 157 175
Horsehead, 153, 154 on -Jupiter, 89
Neptune, 66, 86-88, 90 on Mars, 84
Neutrino, 131-133 simulated synthesis, 168
Neutron, 131, 141
capture of, 136, 148, 160
Newton's law, 121 Pauli exclusion principle, 178
Novae, 123-126 Photochemistry, 176-181
Nuclear reactions, 97, 135-136 photochemical reactions, 176
denotation of, 144 radiation processes, 176 ~
energy sources, 136-140 Photons, 16, 121, 134, 145,
in cyclotrons, 159 171, 177
types, 140-145 Planck's formula, 16, 18, 121
induced by a-particles, Planets, 65-93
143 atmospheres of, 60-65
induced by deuterons, inner and outer, 66
142, 143 origin, 42, 48, 53-56
induced by neutrons, see under names of planets
141 Plasma, 19, 89, 103,,106, 151,
induced by protons, 161
141-142 biplasm, 172
photonuclear, '1.43 simulation of plasma state.
Nucleic acid, 187 t21

\96
Pluto, 66 Satellites, 125
Positron, 131 artificial Earth, 8, 24
Pressure meteorological, 8
gas (electron), 152, 156, 190 of planets, see under names
high, effect of, 97-g9 of planets
in stars, 156, 157 Saturn, 66, 86, 87, 90
light, 120-122, 124 Solar activity, 7, 70, 80
radiation, 156 Solar system, see Planets, SUD
Proteinoids, 188, 189 chemistry of, 53-56
primary synthesis of, 189 theory of origin, 53-54
Proteins, 31, 46, 180, 187 Spectra
Proton, 131, 141 absorption, 19, 20, 33, 34
Pulsating stars, 21, 157, 158, emission, 15, 33, 35
159 reflection, 15, 60, 82
Spectroscopy, 7, 13, 19, 33-35,
65, 114, 124
infrared, 7, 15, 18, 20, 43
Quanta, 16, 18, 136 radio, 7, 21
Quantum theory, 121, 182 ultraviolet, 7, 15, 43
Spin, 131, 178
Spots
Great Red Spot on Jupiter,
Radiation ~.
~orpusculril" ·184
Infrared': .:rd
92
Sun, 57
Stars
,
relect, igS, 169 according to chemical com-
solar, 13, 67, 70, 128, 168, position, 112-120
178 carbon, 117
ultraviolet, 17, 175 helium, 116
visible light, 17, 33 hydrogen, 115
X-ray, 7, 23, 105, 159 iron, 114
Radicals, 102, 169, 183, 191 manganese, 114
complex, 103 silicon, 114
in comets, 128 data for certain stars
Radioactive decay, 146, 175, Alpha Centauri, 13, 107
181 Aquila, 88
Radioautography, 35, 85 Capella, 108
Radiolysis, 45 Cygnus, 108
Rays, see Radiation Procyon, 153
Research methods Sirius, 108
chemical, 29-33 Standard bearer, 108
physicochemical, 33-36 Sun, 108
see Fluorometry, Radio- Swan, 159
autography, Spectromet- Vega, 153
ry density, 94, 95

197
 life history of, 1i 1-i tz, composition, 59
120, 151-162 corona, 59
mass of stellar matter, 152 photosphere, 57, 58
nuclear reactions in, 162-166 spots, 57
number of, 107 temperature, 109
size of, 129 Supernovae, 73, 126-127, 160
sources of energy, 129, 136,
145
spectra, 115 Technetium, 115, 118
temperature, 109, 112, 153, Temperature
155 high, effect of, 100-103
types in stars, 153, 155
Cepheid, 107 Thermocouple, 18, 33, 65, 67
Giants, 95, 107, 109, Triplet state, 178
112-117, 155, 160,165 Tritium, 73, 139, 140
hyperon, 190 Triton, 139
neutron, 157, 190
superdense, 159
Wolf-Rayet, 122-123 Universe
see also Dwarfs origin and evolution, 169-
Stellar classification, 109 173
Stellar energy sources, 129, Uranus, 66, 87, 90
136, 145
Stellar evolution, see Stars
Sun Venus, fs, 20, 64, 66, 67, 68
atmosphere, 59-60
catalytic nuclear proces-
ses, cycles Wavelengths, 33
neon-sodium, 149, 150 Waves
ni trogen-carbon, 148, light, 17
149 radio, 93, 126
proton, 147, 148, 162 Widmanstatten structure, 37
chromosphere, 58
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