astrochemistry
Latest
Jupiter's moon Europa might be coated in irradiated sea salt
Astronomers have spent more than a decade trying to identify the dark substance erupting from geological features on the surface of Europa. Now, a team of researchers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab believe they've identified the mystery material as sea salt. You know, from the ocean that NASA suspects is hiding under Europa's icy surface. The team, led by planetary scientist Kevin Hand, began its investigation by building a testing device that recreates the extreme conditions found on the gas giant's moon. "We call it our 'Europa in a can,'" Hand said in a statement. "The spectra of these materials can then be compared to those collected by spacecraft and telescopes."
The building blocks of life found orbiting another star
Looks like NASA's Chief Scientist Ellen Stofan may have over-estimated how long it would take to find extraterrestrial organisms. For the first time in the history of astronomy, scientists have discovered two complex organic molecules, which is vital to the formation of life as we know it, outside of our solar system. Researchers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts actually found three forms of cyanide -- specifically hydrogen cyanide (HCN), methyl cyanide (CH3CN), and cyanoacetylene (HC3N) -- circling a star known as MWC 480. These are the same sorts of chemicals (and in the same concentrations!) that were present in comets orbiting our own solar system back when life here got its start. And while cyanide is super-duper toxic to living organisms, it's absolutely necessary for life's formation. In short, this discovery is a huge deal because it means that the seeds of life aren't confined to Sol alone.
