In the early days of Earth, life needed an external jolt to form from basic gases, a process demonstrated by Stanley Miller’s 1952 experiment using lightning. Fast forward to recent research by Stanford University’s Richard Zare, which reveals that water itself might have been a ubiquitous catalyst for prebiotic synthesis. By spraying water into a mix of atmospheric gases, researchers replicated Miller’s findings but emphasized that water sprays are ever-present, potentially offering reliable energy for organic compounds to emerge—contradicting the randomness of lightning strikes.
Earth, in its early days, held all the fundamental gases but required external energy, like lightning, for life's building blocks to form, according to Stanley Miller's experiment.
Decades later, a new study indicates that water itself may serve as a more reliable catalyst for prebiotic synthesis, as shown by Richard Zare and colleagues.
The research results suggest that, unlike lightning which is rarely present, water sprays universally acted as an energy source, enabling organic molecule formation.
This work demonstrates how the electrical charge differences in water droplets can create conditions similar to Miller's experiment, paving the way for life's emergence.
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