Mapping of interstellar ices with JWST in protostellar envelopes: Spatial variations of 13CO2, 12CO2, CO, OCN- and H2O ice
Abstract
The composition of planets and their atmospheres is largely determined by the formation environment of the planet. This environment is pre-determined during early stages when the protostar is still forming. Charting the structure of protostellar envelopes is therefore crucial for understanding how the chemistry is linked to the physical processes occurring in stellar nurseries. We use JWST NIRSpec IFU observations to extract spectra at every pixel in the IFU and map the distribution of 13CO2,12CO2, CO, OCN- and H2O ice. The 13CO2 ice feature, a known thermal tracer, is also used to identify high-temperature regions where the ices are thermally processed. The findings show that the distribution of ices in both L1527 and IRAS 20126+4104 is not uniform, with both envelopes showing localized temperature zones and substructures. In L1527, CO2 ice segregation and OCN- enhancement with respect to CO2 are observed in the warm central disk region close to the protostar. In IRAS 20126+4104, the warm temperature zones are observed mostly towards the shocked region in the NW outflow where dense material is interacting with the precessing jet as well as close to the central source. The CO2 ice is segregated at these locations and we observe sublimation of CO ice. In addition, crystalline H2O ice is detected at a few locations in the envelope. In both low mass and high mass protostar the findings indicate that the distribution of ices and their structure are linked to the temperature structure of the envelopes. The envelope of IRAS 20126 shows a more complex structure, where interacting material results in localized regions of high temperatures and denser regions that harbor cooler ices. L1527 in contrast appears to be a more structured system with heated warm ices observed mostly towards the central disk regions.
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BibTeX
@misc{brunken2026mapping,
title = {{Mapping of interstellar ices with JWST in protostellar envelopes: Spatial variations of $^13$CO$_2$, $^12$CO$_2$, CO, OCN$^-$ and H$_2$O ice}},
author = {N. G. C. Brunken and E. F. van Dishoeck and A. C. A. Boogert and P. Nazari and Y. Chen and J. Santos and H. Beuther and A. Caratti o Garatti and T. Megeath and K. Slavicinska and C. Gieser and H. Tyagi and L. Tychoniec and M. McClure and V. J. M. le Gouellec and Y. Yang and L. W. Looney and N. J. Evans and M. Narang},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2610.08491},
eprint = {2610.08491},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.08491},
note = {CC0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Mapping of interstellar ices with JWST in protostellar envelopes: Spatial variations of ^13CO_2, ^12CO_2, CO, OCN^- and H_2O ice
AU - N. G. C. Brunken
AU - E. F. van Dishoeck
AU - A. C. A. Boogert
AU - P. Nazari
AU - Y. Chen
AU - J. Santos
AU - H. Beuther
AU - A. Caratti o Garatti
AU - T. Megeath
AU - K. Slavicinska
AU - C. Gieser
AU - H. Tyagi
AU - L. Tychoniec
AU - M. McClure
AU - V. J. M. le Gouellec
AU - Y. Yang
AU - L. W. Looney
AU - N. J. Evans
AU - M. Narang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/06
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2610.08491
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.08491
AB - The composition of planets and their atmospheres is largely determined by the formation environment of the planet. This environment is pre-determined during early stages when the protostar is still forming. Charting the structure of protostellar envelopes is therefore crucial for understanding how the chemistry is linked to the physical processes occurring in stellar nurseries. We use JWST NIRSpec IFU observations to extract spectra at every pixel in the IFU and map the distribution of ^13CO_2,^12CO_2, CO, OCN^- and H_2O ice. The 13CO2 ice feature, a known thermal tracer, is also used to identify high-temperature regions where the ices are thermally processed. The findings show that the distribution of ices in both L1527 and IRAS 20126+4104 is not uniform, with both envelopes showing localized temperature zones and substructures. In L1527, CO_2 ice segregation and OCN^- enhancement with respect to CO_2 are observed in the warm central disk region close to the protostar. In IRAS 20126+4104, the warm temperature zones are observed mostly towards the shocked region in the NW outflow where dense material is interacting with the precessing jet as well as close to the central source. The CO_2 ice is segregated at these locations and we observe sublimation of CO ice. In addition, crystalline H_2O ice is detected at a few locations in the envelope. In both low mass and high mass protostar the findings indicate that the distribution of ices and their structure are linked to the temperature structure of the envelopes. The envelope of IRAS 20126 shows a more complex structure, where interacting material results in localized regions of high temperatures and denser regions that harbor cooler ices. L1527 in contrast appears to be a more structured system with heated warm ices observed mostly towards the central disk regions.
ER -