http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Presence_Of_Essential_Molecule_In_Space_Could_Support_Life_On_Other_Planets_999.htmlPresence Of Essential Molecule In Space Could Support Life On Other Planets
Presence of essential molecule in space could support life on other planets, as MU researcher presents origin-of-life theory for young Earth.
by Staff Writers
Columbia MO (SPX) Aug 27, 2007
Some of the elements necessary to support life on Earth are widely known - oxygen, carbon and water, to name a few. Just as important in the existence of life as any other component is the presence of adenine, an essential organic molecule. Without it, the basic building blocks of life would not come together.
Scientists have been trying to find the origin of Earth's adenine and where else it might exist in the solar system. University of Missouri-Columbia researcher Rainer Glaser may have the answer.
Life exists on Earth because of a delicate combination of chemical ingredients. Using a theoretical model, Glaser is hypothesizing the existence of adenine in interstellar dust clouds. Those same clouds may have showered young Earth with adenine as it began cooling billions of years ago, and could potentially hold the key for initiating a similar process on another planet.
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Glaser believes astronomers should look for interstellar dust clouds that have highly-concentrated hydrogen cyanide (HCN), which can indicate the presence of adenine. Finding such pockets would narrow the spectrum of where life could exist within the Milky Way galaxy.
"There is a lot of sky with a few areas that have dust clouds. In those dust clouds, a few of them have HCN. A few of those have enough HCN to support the synthesis of the molecules of life. Now, we have to look for the HCN concentrations, and that's where you want to look for adenine," Glaser said.
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