All the essential ingredients to kick-start #life as we know it have now been found in samples from the #asteroid #Bennu.

Asteroids could have delivered all the prerequisites for life to Earth – and perhaps elsewhere.

In 2020, OSIRIS-REx mission extracted samples from Bennu, an asteroid that was orbiting the #sun between Mars and Jupiter, and returned the samples to Earth in 2023.

Since then, small amounts of the 121 grams collected have been sent out to labs across the globe for analysis, so specialists in detecting each type of biological compound could set to work.

The first studies revealed the presence of #water, #carbon and several organic molecules. Next came the detection of amino acids, formaldehyde and all five of the nucleobases found in #RNA and #DNA, as well as phosphates.

However, this isn’t quite enough to put together the molecules that carry genetic information.

Now, scientists have revealed the presence of #ribose, as well as other sugars, including lyxose, xylose, arabinose, glucose and galactose.

#astrobiology
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2506650-asteroid-bennu-carries-all-the-ingredients-for-life-as-we-know-it/

Paper by Furukawa et al. (2025): https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-025-01838-6

Part 2: Tryptophan discovery: How do we know what we know?

As promised, we gonna circle back on that tryptophan discovery.
(For Part 1 in this series see here: https://deepspace.social/@mike_malaska/115653001232082594)

And this gets to an even bigger question in #astrobiology (and life in general):
“How do you know what you know?”

We gonna dive deep into the analytical chemistry of that reported tryptophan detection, digging into the supplementary information analysis.

[thread]

In biology, all these amino acids are useful. So the belief is that in an active biological system, life will be generating these useful pieces and parts in relative equal abundance.

(There is surprisingly not a lot of literature on this. It is taken as a given. Doing bulk amino acid abundance inventories on different microbes would be very valuable to the #astrobiology community. I give y'all this proposal idea for free. Follow me for more funding ideas!)

Part 2: Tryptophan discovery: How do we know what we know?

As promised, we gonna circle back on that tryptophan discovery.
(For Part 1 in this series see here: https://deepspace.social/@mike_malaska/115653001232082594)

And this gets to an even bigger question in #astrobiology (and life in general):
“How do you know what you know?”

We gonna dive deep into the analytical chemistry of that reported tryptophan detection, digging into the supplementary information analysis.

[thread]

All the essential ingredients to kick-start #life as we know it have now been found in samples from the #asteroid #Bennu.

Asteroids could have delivered all the prerequisites for life to Earth – and perhaps elsewhere.

In 2020, OSIRIS-REx mission extracted samples from Bennu, an asteroid that was orbiting the #sun between Mars and Jupiter, and returned the samples to Earth in 2023.

Since then, small amounts of the 121 grams collected have been sent out to labs across the globe for analysis, so specialists in detecting each type of biological compound could set to work.

The first studies revealed the presence of #water, #carbon and several organic molecules. Next came the detection of amino acids, formaldehyde and all five of the nucleobases found in #RNA and #DNA, as well as phosphates.

However, this isn’t quite enough to put together the molecules that carry genetic information.

Now, scientists have revealed the presence of #ribose, as well as other sugars, including lyxose, xylose, arabinose, glucose and galactose.

#astrobiology
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2506650-asteroid-bennu-carries-all-the-ingredients-for-life-as-we-know-it/

Paper by Furukawa et al. (2025): https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-025-01838-6

Why is the potential discovery of tryptophan in an asteroid sample such a big deal for #astrobiology?

Gonna do a deep dive behind the headlines.

For starters, here is a link to the discovery article: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2512461122

thread time!

In biology, all these amino acids are useful. So the belief is that in an active biological system, life will be generating these useful pieces and parts in relative equal abundance.

(There is surprisingly not a lot of literature on this. It is taken as a given. Doing bulk amino acid abundance inventories on different microbes would be very valuable to the #astrobiology community. I give y'all this proposal idea for free. Follow me for more funding ideas!)

Why is the potential discovery of tryptophan in an asteroid sample such a big deal for #astrobiology?

Gonna do a deep dive behind the headlines.

For starters, here is a link to the discovery article: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2512461122

thread time!

Tryptophan, an essential amino acid, has been found to exist on #Bennu, a small #asteroid that swings by our #planet about every six years.

The discovery stems from an unprecedented sample collected by the OSIRIS-REx mission, which landed a #spacecraft on the asteroid in 2020, captured 121.6 grams of rocks and dust, and safely returned the cache to Earth in 2023.

Studying Bennu is important because its composition reflects that of the early solar system, giving scientists a glimpse into the beginnings of #life.

Finding tryptophan in the Bennu asteroid is a big deal, because #tryptophan is one of the more complex amino acids, and until now it had never been seen in any #meteorite or space sample.

The presence of tryptophan in an asteroid supports the idea that the recipe for life might not have begun only on Earth. Seeing it form naturally in space tells us that these ingredients were already being made out in the early Solar System. That would have made it easier for life to get started.

#astrobiology
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/27/science/tryptophan-asteroid-bennu-nasa-sample

Tryptophan, an essential amino acid, has been found to exist on #Bennu, a small #asteroid that swings by our #planet about every six years.

The discovery stems from an unprecedented sample collected by the OSIRIS-REx mission, which landed a #spacecraft on the asteroid in 2020, captured 121.6 grams of rocks and dust, and safely returned the cache to Earth in 2023.

Studying Bennu is important because its composition reflects that of the early solar system, giving scientists a glimpse into the beginnings of #life.

Finding tryptophan in the Bennu asteroid is a big deal, because #tryptophan is one of the more complex amino acids, and until now it had never been seen in any #meteorite or space sample.

The presence of tryptophan in an asteroid supports the idea that the recipe for life might not have begun only on Earth. Seeing it form naturally in space tells us that these ingredients were already being made out in the early Solar System. That would have made it easier for life to get started.

#astrobiology
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/27/science/tryptophan-asteroid-bennu-nasa-sample

Enceladus is a highly active world, with a global, salty sub-surface #ocean, believed to be the source of its heat.

The presence of liquid #water, heat and the right chemicals (such as phosphorus and complex hydrocarbons) means that its sub-surface ocean could be one of the best places in our solar system for #life to have evolved outside the Earth.

A new study has provided the first evidence of significant heat flow at #Enceladus’ north pole, overturning previous assumptions that heat loss was confined to its active south pole.

This finding confirms that the icy moon is emitting far more heat than would be expected if it were simply a passive body, strengthening the case that it could support life.

The balance between heat production and loss strongly suggests that Enceladus’ ocean can remain liquid over geological timescales, offering a stable environment where life could potentially emerge.

#astrobiology
https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2025-11-10-saturn-s-icy-moon-may-host-stable-ocean-fit-life-new-study-finds

Enceladus is a highly active world, with a global, salty sub-surface #ocean, believed to be the source of its heat.

The presence of liquid #water, heat and the right chemicals (such as phosphorus and complex hydrocarbons) means that its sub-surface ocean could be one of the best places in our solar system for #life to have evolved outside the Earth.

A new study has provided the first evidence of significant heat flow at #Enceladus’ north pole, overturning previous assumptions that heat loss was confined to its active south pole.

This finding confirms that the icy moon is emitting far more heat than would be expected if it were simply a passive body, strengthening the case that it could support life.

The balance between heat production and loss strongly suggests that Enceladus’ ocean can remain liquid over geological timescales, offering a stable environment where life could potentially emerge.

#astrobiology
https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2025-11-10-saturn-s-icy-moon-may-host-stable-ocean-fit-life-new-study-finds

Yet to find an article on our white paper for NASA on the work needed to anticipate the challenges and societal impacts of a possible discovery of life beyond earth that doesn’t lead with: “aliens!!!”

But, I guess that’s part of the course…

It was extremely interesting to author this paper with such a varied group of researchers at the @setihub. An honour and a pleasure to work with such curious and generous colleagues.

https://www.oklahoman.com/story/lifestyle/2025/09/13/previous-preparation-for-alien-contact-is-outdated-study-says/86105519007/ #SETI #post-detection #astrobiology #nasa

We may have found evidence for past #life on #Mars from an era, when subsurface brine could have supported #methanogens.

But life requires liquid water, and it is largely nonexistent near the surface today. This global drying may have been caused by the microbial life itself.

#astrobiology
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-022-01786-w

We may have found evidence for past #life on #Mars from an era, when subsurface brine could have supported #methanogens.

But life requires liquid water, and it is largely nonexistent near the surface today. This global drying may have been caused by the microbial life itself.

#astrobiology
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-022-01786-w

We gonna peek a little bit beyond the headlines here about the potential Mars biosignatures. Why is this such a big deal for #astrobiology ?

Here is the press release:

https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-says-mars-rover-discovered-potential-biosignature-last-year/

We gonna peek a little bit beyond the headlines here about the potential Mars biosignatures. Why is this such a big deal for #astrobiology ?

Here is the press release:

https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-says-mars-rover-discovered-potential-biosignature-last-year/

Well now, that's interesting!

https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-says-mars-rover-discovered-potential-biosignature-last-year/

#NASA#Astrobiology#Mars