Key molecules for life found in samples from asteroid Ryugu

The Ministry of Education of Japan reports that more than 20 types of amino acids have been found in samples from the asteroid Ryugu brought to Earth in December 2020. About it writes Japan Times.

This is the first evidence of the existence of amino acids on asteroids in space. It provides insight into how vital organic molecules could have gotten to Earth.

Rock samples were collected using the Hayabusa-2 spacecraft. This Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) probe landed on Ryuga in 2019 and extracted about 5.4 grams of particles from the surface and interior of the asteroid.

Ryugu is a carbon-rich fragment of a larger asteroid. Scientists described samples extracted from it as "the most primitive material in the solar system that we have ever studied." However, the discovery of amino acids makes it an important element in the theory of the origin of life.

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins, making them indispensable organic molecules for the appearance of shapes. Ancient rocks on Earth have provided evidence that molecules like those found on Ryugu arrived here billions of years ago.

Now scientists are trying to understand how organic compounds are formed in the extraterrestrial environment.