New Molecule Linked To The Emergence Of Life Detected Around A Star 444 Light-Years Away

Is there life elsewhere in the cosmos? That’s the biggest of questions so astronomers break it down to one they can begin to answer—do the ingredients for life exist in star systems we can study? Yes, according to new research published in Astronomy and Astrophysics, which has identified a molecule that’s considered a precursor of larger organic molecules that can lead to the emergence of life.

What’s more, the molecule in question—dimethyl ether—hasn’t just been found in a random part of space, but within a ring of millimetre-sized icy dust grains otherwise known as a planet-forming disc, around a nearby star.

With nine atoms, this is the largest molecule identified in a planet-forming disc so far. Dimethyl ether has been spotted before in star-forming clouds, but this is the first detection of the organic molecule in a planet-forming disc.

The researchers also detected methyl formate, a building block for even larger organic molecules. However, it was only a tentative detection.

Molecules like these are the precursors of prebiotic molecules likes amino acids and sugars, which are regarded as some of the basic building blocks of life.

“From these results, we can learn more about the origin of life on our planet and therefore get a better idea of the potential for life in other planetary systems,” said Nashanty Brunken, a Master’s student at Leiden Observatory, part of Leiden University in the Netherlands and lead author of the study.

The molecules were found around the young star IRS 48 (also known as Oph-IRS 48), which is 444 light-years distant in the constellation of Ophiuchus. It’s thought that a “baby planet” exists there. The molecules were detected using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile’s Atacama desert.

“What makes this even more exciting is that we now know these larger complex molecules are available to feed forming planets in the disc,” said Alice Booth, co-author of the paper and a researcher at Leiden Observatory. “This was not known before as in most systems these molecules are hidden in the ice.”

It’s a step forward in understanding how prebiotic molecules end up on planets, including Earth.

“We are incredibly pleased that we can now start to follow the entire journey of these complex molecules from the clouds that form stars, to planet-forming discs, and to comets,” said Nienke van der Marel, a Leiden Observatory researcher who also participated in the study. “Hopefully with more observations we can get a step closer to understanding the origin of prebiotic molecules in our own Solar System.”

Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.