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Astronomers have identified a type of sugar in interstellar space, a discovery that could help scientists better understand how the basic ingredients of life formed in the Universe.
Erythrulose, a sugar found in nature, including raspberries, and in some tanning products, was discovered in a large cloud of gas and dust near the center of our Milky Way galaxy.
To identify this molecule, the researchers used two radio telescopes in Spain to analyze electromagnetic signals emitted by the interstellar cloud. These signals were then compared to laboratory samples, confirming the presence of erythrulose in a gaseous state.
Sugars are not only important in food. In biology, they are a source of energy for cells and constitute essential elements of molecules such as DNA. For this reason, the discovery of such molecules in space is considered important for research into the origins of life.
This isn't the first discovery of organic compounds in the galaxy. Over the past few decades, astronomers have identified molecules related to genetic material and the basic structures of cells. Samples brought back from the asteroid Bennu by NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission also contained other sugars, including an important component of DNA.
According to astrophysicist Erika Hamden from the University of Arizona, erythrulose is not a molecule essential for life, but can be easily converted into other forms of sugars that are considered important in prebiotic processes.
"It's a pure example of matter just floating around the galaxy," Hamden said.
The discovery supports the hypothesis that many of the chemical ingredients needed for the birth of life may have been present in the interstellar cloud from which the Solar System formed, and not necessarily brought to Earth later by comets or asteroids.
The researchers now aim to search for other sugar molecules in different regions of the galaxy, in the hope that they will shed more light on the chemical processes that precede the formation of life.
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