Laurie Chu (Caltech/IPAC): "Unlocking the Secrets of Ices in Dense Molecular Clouds: A New Era with JWST"

Cold (T∼10K), dense (n>10^5 cm^-3) molecular cores are the birthplace of solar-like stars and provide a rich environment for the growth of ices and complex organic molecules (COMs) to form on cold dust grain surfaces. Icy mantles play a key role in building larger planetary bodies. Some evidence suggests these primitive molecules survive the harsh planetary formation process and are incorporated into some of the Solar System components we see today. Another possibility is that there is a reset in the chemistry once a star has formed. Observationally constraining the formation process of these ices and the growth of dust grains has been challenging. Most ice features can be detected in the near- and mid-infrared, and their profiles can provide insight on the chemical reactions that occur at different cloud densities and show signatures of grain growth. Now in the new era of JWST, we have access to this entire spectral regime with higher sensitivity and resolution than ever before. I will highlight some of the exciting science results made possible by these new observations as we are on the brink of understanding more about the initial conditions within early protoplanetary systems.