Astronomers Have Found a Sugar Molecule in Deep Space for the First Time Ever
For the first time in history, astronomers have detected a sugar molecule floating among the gas clouds of interstellar space.
Erythrulose has four carbon atoms, and on Earth, it occurs naturally in some fruits. Its presence 26,000 light-years away could help untangle the mystery of the origin of life on our planet.
The study was published this week in Nature Astronomy. The team, led by Izaskun Jiménez Serra, analyzed data captured by radio telescopes in Spain to identify the molecule’s signature in the microwave frequencies it produces as it rotates.
Sugar molecules are essential for life. They fuel cells and are part of RNA and DNA. Yet scientists still don't know how they accumulated in large enough quantities on the early Earth. One possibility is that some of the molecules did not originate on the planet but instead reached Earth via meteorites.
For the new study,...
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