  The new high precision data on charmonium production in proton-nucleus
collisions by the E866/NuSea collaboration at Fermilab allow - together with
older data at lower energies - to fix a unique set of parameters for the
standard production and absorption scenario of charmonium in a proton-nucleus
reaction. In this scenario the c-cbar pair is formed in an octet state, emits a
gluon and continues its radial expansion in a singlet state until it has
reached the charmonium radius. In all three phases it can interact with the
nuclear environment. We find that the lifetime of the octet state is much
shorter than acceptable on physical grounds. This challenges the physical
reality of the first phase in the standard scenario.
