building blocks for life

Latest about building blocks for life

a ball of grey boulders and rocks seen against the blackness of space
NASA discovers 'space gum' and sugars 'crucial to life' in asteroid Bennu samples brought to Earth (video)

By Sharmila Kuthunur Published

Asteroid Bennu samples contain life-friendly sugars, a strange "space-gum," and ancient stardust

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Asteroids
A blue and red cloud in space with spots for stars with two box outs on the right, the top one showing a green and brown molecule and the bottom showing a pixelated target shape with purple and yellow colors
JWST makes key detection of complex organic molecules around star in galaxy beyond our Milky Way

By Keith Cooper Published

The molecules are building blocks of the chemical precursors of things such as RNA.

James Webb Space Telescope
An illustration of a gray planet spewing blue water at the south pole
Saturn's moon Enceladus is shooting out organic molecules that could help create life

By Keith Cooper Published

The discovery strengthens the case for a new mission to orbit and land on Enceladus and search for evidence of life.

Saturn
A mosaic image of the asteroid Bennu created by observations made by NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft.
Scientists discover minerals in asteroid Ryugu that are older than Earth itself

By Samantha Mathewson Published

Asteroid Ryugu is proving to be one of the most scientifically valuable time capsules in the solar system.

Asteroids
A large red and orange sphere to the left is an irregularly shaped grey rock with white and brown smoke above a box containing two irregularly shaped rocks one silvery the other larger and grey with white speckles
The key ingredients for life on Earth came from space, new evidence suggests

By Robert Lea Published

'If we can understand how these materials came to be on Earth, it might give us clues to how life originated here, and how it might emerge elsewhere.'

Search for Life
space hamburger
What's in a 'Space Hamburger'? Ingredients for Life, It Seems

By Hanneke Weitering Published

A young protostar that bears a striking resemblance to a giant "space hamburger" contains the molecular building blocks of life, researchers discovered.

Search for Life
Organic Molecules Found in Diverse Space Places
Organic Molecules Found in Diverse Space Places

By Ker Than Published

A two-year survey of interstellar dust clouds has turned up eight organic molecules in both a stellar nursery and in a cold, starless region of space.

Solar System