Carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of amino acids from asteroid Bennu reveals distinct formation mechanisms operating during the early Solar System's first few million years. The isotopic signatures indicate both high-temperature synthesis near the proto-Sun and low-temperature aqueous processing within the asteroid itself produced these essential biological building blocks. This dual-pathway discovery fundamentally reshapes our understanding of prebiotic chemistry distribution throughout the Solar System. Rather than amino acids forming through a single dominant process, multiple concurrent mechanisms were generating these compounds across different temperature and chemical environments. The findings suggest that life's molecular precursors were more abundant and widely distributed than previously thought, emerging through both stellar proximity reactions and later hydrothermal processes within rocky bodies. For astrobiology, this indicates that amino acid availability wasn't limited to specific zones or conditions, potentially making life's emergence more probable across diverse planetary environments. The Bennu samples provide direct evidence that asteroid impacts could have delivered varied amino acid populations to early Earth, each carrying distinct isotopic fingerprints of their formation history. This multiplicity of synthesis pathways strengthens hypotheses about life's cosmic ubiquity.
Bennu Asteroid Reveals Multiple Amino Acid Formation Routes in Early Solar System
📄 Based on research published in PNAS
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