Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Brief Communications Arising
  • Published:

Astrochemistry

Complex organic matter in Titan's aerosols? (Reply)

Nature volume 444, pages E6–E7 (2006)Cite this article

Abstract

Biemann1 calls into question our preliminary interpretations of our experimental results2. A comparison of laboratory and flight measurements should settle the uncertainties he raises. In addition to evaluating instrumental characteristics such as the 'piston effect', a technique we used for injecting oven-gas content for gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS), such studies should enable a wide range of possible compositions for Titan's aerosols to be investigated. Our aerosol collection and pyrolysis (ACP) measurements in Titan's atmosphere can then be revisited.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Biemann, K. Nature 444, doi:10.1038/nature05417 (2006).

  2. Israël, G. et al. Nature 438, 796–799 (2005).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  3. Khare, B. N. et al. Icarus 60, 127–137 (1984).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. McDonald, G. D. et al. Icarus 108, 137–145 (1994).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Coll, P. et al. Planet. Space Sci. 47, 1331–1340 (1999).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Ramirez, S. I. et al. Icarus 156, 515–529 (2002).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Bernard, J. M. et al. Icarus 185, 301–307 (2006).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Thompson, W. R., Henry, T. J., Schwartz, J. M., Khare, B. N. & Sagan, C. Origins of Life 19, 475–476 (1989).

    Google Scholar 

  9. Lichtin, D. A. & Lin, M. C. Chem. Phys. 104, 325–330 (1986).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Service d'Aéronomie UMR 7620 CNRS, ISPL, Universities Paris 6 and Versailles-Saint Quentin, Verrières-le-Buisson, 91371, France

    G. Israël, C. Szopa, M. Cabane, J.-F. Brun, E. Chassefière & A. Hauchecorne

  2. Laboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systèmes Atmosphériques, UMR 7583 CNRS, Universities Paris 12 and Paris 7, Créteil, 94010, France

    F. Raulin, P. Coll, D. Coscia, M. J. Nguyen & R. Sternberg

  3. NASA Goddard Space Flight Centre, Greenbelt, 20771, Maryland, USA

    H. B. Niemann

  4. Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 48109, Michigan, USA

    S. K. Atreya

  5. Institute for Meteorology and Geophysics, University of Graz, Graz, 8010, Austria

    S. J. Bauer

  6. Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), Toulouse, 31401, France

    E. Condé

  7. Office National d'Etudes et de Recherches Aérospatiales, Toulouse, 31055, France

    P. Millian & J.-M. Siguier

  8. Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, 96822, Hawaii, USA

    T. Owen

  9. Space Research Institute, Graz, 8010, Austria

    W. Riedler

  10. Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, 20742, USA

    R. E. Samuelson

  11. Institut für Weltraumforschung, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Graz, 8042, Austria

    M. Steller

  12. Laboratoire de Recherche sur les Polymères, UMR 7581 CNRS, Thiais, 94320, France

    C. Vidal-Madjar

Authors
  1. G. Israël
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. C. Szopa
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. F. Raulin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. M. Cabane
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. H. B. Niemann
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. S. K. Atreya
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. S. J. Bauer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. J.-F. Brun
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. E. Chassefière
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. P. Coll
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. E. Condé
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. D. Coscia
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. A. Hauchecorne
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. P. Millian
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  15. M. J. Nguyen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  16. T. Owen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  17. W. Riedler
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  18. R. E. Samuelson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  19. J.-M. Siguier
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  20. M. Steller
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  21. R. Sternberg
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  22. C. Vidal-Madjar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Israël, G., Szopa, C., Raulin, F. et al. Complex organic matter in Titan's aerosols? (Reply). Nature 444, E6–E7 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature05418

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature05418

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing