Possible ‘seeds of life’ in asteroid Ryugu samples brought to Earth

Analysis of samples from the asteroid Ryugu suggest the presence of what could possibly be the "seeds of life."

The asteroid Ryugu captured from a distance of about 20 kilometres away. (JAXA)

Ever since Japan’s Hayabusa2 brought back samples of the asteroid Ryugu to Earth, it has had astrochemists interested in the window into a different world. Two organic compounds essential for living organisms have already been detected in the sample. But now, scientists say they have discovered what could possibly be “ the small seeds of life once delivered from space to Earth.”

That is exactly what Megumi Matsumoto, coauthor of a study published in the journal Science Advances last month, said in a press statement. The study claims to have discovered evidence that points to cometary organic matter being transported from space to regions near Earth.

Ryugu does not have a protective atmosphere and its surface is directly exposed to space. This means that small interplanetary dust in space can hit the surface of the asteroid, making changes to its composition and even depositing surface materials.

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Matsumoto and her colleagues explains that the sample surfaces contain “melt splashes” ranging from 5 to 20 micrometers. These splashes could have been created when Ryugu got bombarded by micrometeoroids of cometary dust.

“Our 3D CT imaging and chemical analyses showed that the melt splashes consist mainly of silicate glasses with voids and small inclusions of spherical iron sulfides. The chemical compositions of the melt splashes suggest that Ryugu’s hydrous silicates mixed with cometary dust,” added Matsumoto.

Their analysis also detected small carbonaceous materials in texture similar to primitive organic matter in cometary dust. But they lack nitrogen and oxygen, making them chemically different from organic matter.

Matsumoto and team propose that the materials formed from cometary organic matter when volatiles like nitrogen and oxygen were evaporated because of heating. This suggests that cometary matter could have been transported from the outer solar system to a region near Earth.

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