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Mass spectrometry data from the Rosetta spacecraft show that 3.8% of the gas emitted by Comet 67P is molecular oxygen, O2. The result is surprising, because oxygen readily combines with other elements. A likely explanation for the presence of free oxygen is that the material comprising the comet never went through an episode of high temperatures.
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Fascinating is a word I use for the unexpected.
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(Score: 1) by dak664 on Sunday November 01 2015, @05:38PM
The 10 Kelvin doubling is usual for typical chemical reactions (activation energies around 50kJ/mol) at room temperature ~300K, because of the change in the rate factor exp(-Ea/RT). At low temperatures, and particularly in rarefied atmospheres, entropy probably drives the distribution of final products. Just because a compound is stable(reactive) at room temperature does not mean it is the stable(reactive) at low temperatures.