New scientific discovery! The existence of life outside the Earth has been confirmed for the first time

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#The first confirmed existence of life outside the Earth#

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According to Japanese media reports, the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology said that scientists have detected more than 20 amino acids in samples collected by the asteroid probe Hayabusa 2. This is the first evidence of the existence of amino acids outside the Earth, which is of great significance for understanding how these vital organic molecules arrived on Earth.

In December 2020, the six-year recovery capsule carried by the Hayabusa 2 probe returned to Earth from the asteroid Ryugu more than 300 million kilometers away, bringing back about 5.4 grams of planetary surface samples. After analyzing the samples, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and other teams detected more than 20 kinds of amino acids.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's asteroid probe Hayabusa 2 approaches its target asteroid Ryugu. Image credit: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency

Kensho Kobayashi, professor emeritus of astrobiology at Yokohama National University in Japan, said that the discovery of multiple amino acids on celestial bodies other than Earth is "unprecedented" and may even suggest the existence of life outside Earth. "It proves that amino acids exist underground in asteroids, increasing the possibility that these compounds have reached Earth from space." This also means that amino acids may exist on other planets and natural satellites, suggesting that "life may have been born in more places in the universe than previously thought."

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins, organic molecules that are essential for the formation of life. Although it is not known how amino acids arrived on ancient Earth, one theory is that they were already present in large quantities when the Earth was formed 4.6 billion years ago, but disappeared when the Earth was covered by magma and became extremely hot, but were then reintroduced from outer space by meteors. There are also theories that amino acids themselves exist on the surface of the Earth.

This time, Hayabusa 2 collected samples from underground material of the asteroid that was not eroded by sunlight or cosmic rays, and the analysis was carried out without exposing it to the Earth's air, which means that researchers have confirmed for the first time that the components of life also exist in outer space.

As more data from the Ryugu samples are analyzed, scientists will gain more information about the composition of the asteroid and how it formed. By comparing the results of the Ryugu sample material with samples collected from the asteroid Bennu, scientists will better understand the various chemical mixtures in the universe and how life arose.

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Source: Science and Technology Daily