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火星探査車「キュリオシティ」が、火星の地下で古代に残る有機物を検出。NASAの研究によると、この調査はフィロジカルサイエンス学部のアミ・ウィリアムズ教授によって行われ、有機分子20種類以上を特定した。そのうち、DNA前駆体と似た構造を持つ窒素含有的化合物と双環式硫黄化合物「ベンゾチフェン」が新たに発見された。
これらの化合物は、過去の火星で生命が存在したことを示す可能性があるが、地質学的或いは隕石からのものである可能性もある。調査結果はNature Communicationsに掲載されている。
この研究は2012年に火星着陸し、数十億年前の微生物生活を検討するために設置されたキュリオシティと2021年着陸の perseverance 探査車のミッションで行われた。
NASA's Curiosity rover has identified a diverse set of organic molecules on Mars, including a nitrogen-bearing compound similar in structure to DNA precursors. The finding strengthens the case that ancient organic material can survive in the Martian subsurface, though it does not prove past life because the compounds could also come from geology or meteorites. Phys.org reports: The study was led by Amy Williams, Ph.D., a professor of geological sciences at the University of Florida and a scientist on the Curiosity and Perseverance Mars rover missions. Curiosity landed on Mars in 2012 to find evidence that ancient Mars had conditions that could support microbial life billions of years ago; the Perseverance rover, which landed in 2021, was sent to look for signs of any ancient life that might have formed.
Among the 20-plus chemicals identified by the experiment, Curiosity spotted a nitrogen-bearing molecule with a structure similar to DNA precursors -- a chemical never before spotted on Mars. The rover also identified benzothiophene, a large, double-ringed, sulfurous chemical often delivered to planets by meteorites. "The same stuff that rained down on Mars from meteorites is what rained down on Earth, and it probably provided the building blocks for life as we know it on our planet," Williams said. The findings have been published in the journal Nature Communications.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
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