Posted on 03/19/2024 10:22:46 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
The latest discoveries were made by Webb's Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) instrument as part of the James Webb Observations of Young ProtoStars (JOYS+) program and revealed key chemical ingredients astronomers are looking for in the search for distant worlds that could be home to life.
Given that they are young protostars, IRAS 2A and IRAS 23385 do not appear to have planets in orbits around them yet. However, the detections of organic molecules around them are promising indicators for regions of future habitability.
Along with the detection of ethanol, MIRI has also detected what astronomers believe is probably acetic acid, an ingredient commonly found in vinegar, among the organic molecules recently detected.
Initially detected in the gaseous phase during the previous research, these complex organic molecules have now been detected in the solid phase, a likely result of sublimation, which involves rapid changes from solid to gas without a liquid phase...
Another key factor regarding their presence within ice is that they may eventually be incorporated into the comets and asteroids, where they may be carried for long periods until they potentially collide with a newly formed planet...
Eventually, these molecules carried along in ice for long periods may become part of new planetary systems once the ice makes its way closer to the inner region of the planet-forming disk that takes shape as a protostellar system evolves.
In addition to complex organic molecules like ethanol and acetic acid, simpler molecules that include formic acid, methane, and formaldehyde were also present around the protostars.
Sulfur dioxide was also detected, a compound that could be vital in the production of metabolic reactions that occurred early in our planet's history.
(Excerpt) Read more at thedebrief.org ...
SPACE PARTY!!
Wrong thread?
The Romulans
Or the Klingons because alcohol just doesn’t appear in outer space.
#1 Shaken but not stirred.
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