There may be a new technique that could help scientists search for space dust for life's ingredients, which could help them eventually find life on other planets. Researchers have taken a look at carbon-rich meteorites and have found out a way to better understand the potential origins of life.
Carbon-rich meteorites are also known as carbonaceous chondrites. These meteorites contain amino acids, which are used to make proteins-some of the most important molecules to life. They're used to make structures like hair and skin and can regulate chemical reactions. Yet these carbon-rich meteorites are relatively rare and comprise less than five percent of recovered meteorites.
"Despite their small size, these interplanetary dust particles may have provided higher quantities and a steadier supply of extraterrestrial organic matter to early Earth," said Michael Callahan of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in a news release. "Unfortunately, there have been limited studies examining their organic composition, especially with regards to biologically relevant molecules that may have been important for the origin of life, due to the miniscule size of these samples."
That's why researchers have been employing new techniques in order to examine extremely small meteorites samples for the components of life. More specifically, they used a nanoflow liquid chromatography instrument to sort the molecules in the meteorite samples. In fact, the samples they're examining are about 1,000 times smaller than the typical sample size used.
"We got the same results looking at a very small fragment as we did a much larger fragment from the same meteorite," said Callahan in a news release. "These techniques will allow us to investigate other small-scale extraterrestrial materials such as micrometeorites, interplanetary dust particles and cometary particles in future studies."
The technology will be valuable for assessing meteorites and other samples in the future. This, in particular, may help scientists identify materials that are needed for life, which could help lead them to discover locations where life might arise
