MULTI-ISOTOPIC MEASUREMENTS OF OZONE FORMATION ON INTERSTELLAR DUST GRAIN ANALOGSDECADES OF MULTI-OXYGEN ISOTOPIC MEASUREMENTS OF PLANETARY MATERIALS HAVE SHOWN THAT THE DISTRIBUTION OF OXYGEN ISOTOPES IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM IS ANOMALOUS AND CANNOT BE EXPLAINED BY CONVENTIONAL MASS-DEPENDENT ISOTOPIC FRACTIONATION PROCESSES. BECAUSE OF THE CENTRAL IMPORTANCE THAT OXYGEN HAS AS BOTH A REFRACTORY AND VOLATILE ELEMENT UNDERSTANDING THE PHYSICAL-CHEMICAL PROCESSES RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DISTRIBUTION OF OXYGEN ISOTOPES IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM AS REVEALED BY STUDIES OF METEORITES AND THE GENESIS MISSION IS ESSENTIAL FOR ADVANCING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE FORMATION AND EVOLUTION OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM. BASED ON THE WELL-KNOWN MASSINDEPENDENT OXYGEN ISOTOPE EFFECT OF OZONE IN THE GAS-PHASE IT WAS RECENTLY PROPOSED THAT THE FORMATION OF OZONE A LIKELY PRECURSOR TOWATER ON COLD DUST GRAINS IN DENSE MOLECULAR CLOUDS MAY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ANOMALOUS DISTRIBUTION OF OXYGEN ISOTOPES IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM. HERE WE PROPOSE SYSTEMATIC LABORATORY STUDIES OF OZONE FORMATION ON COLD DUST GRAIN SURFACES TO TEST THE HYPOTHESIS THAT DUST GRAIN PHOTOCHEMISTRY MAY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MASS-INDEPENDENT DISTRIBUTIONS OF OXYGEN ISOTOPES IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

California State University San Marcos Corp

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