NASA's Osiris-Rex spacecraft has returned samples from asteroid Bennu, revealing primordial materials crucial for life's origins. Scientists found amino acids, nitrogen, and sodium-rich minerals in the samples, supporting the idea that asteroids may have delivered life's building blocks to Earth. These findings demonstrate the potential for an environment of salty water, which is essential for life's formation. The research emphasizes the unique value of directly collected samples, allowing for more accurate analyses compared to meteorite studies.
That's the kind of environment that could have been essential to the steps that lead from elements to life.
This discovery was only possible by analyzing samples that were collected directly from the asteroid then carefully preserved back on Earth.
Combining the ingredients of life with an environment of sodium-rich salt water, or brines, that's really the pathway to life.
NASA's Osiris-Rex spacecraft returned 122 grams of dust and pebbles from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu.
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