Sugar Molecules Found in Interstellar Space
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- Izaskun Jiménez-Serra and her team at the Centre for Astrobiology in Madrid searched for simple sugars in the molecular cloud G+0.693−0.027 using radio telescopes and spectral fingerprint analysis, initially targeting glyceraldehyde and dihydroxyacetone without success.
- Jiménez-Serra unexpectedly detected large quantities of erythrulose, a four-carbon sugar found in raspberries, in the same interstellar cloud, marking the first confirmed discovery of a true sugar in space.
- G+0.693−0.027, a molecular cloud 26,700 light years away, is now known to host dozens of organic molecules, including the newly identified erythrulose, suggesting complex organic chemistry occurs early in star and planet formation.
- Yoshihiro Furukawa at Tohoku University in Japan called the finding a very exciting development that confirms an additional source of sugar delivery beyond meteorites and asteroids, supporting theories of extraterrestrial origins for life’s ingredients.
- Niels Ligterink at TU Delft in the Netherlands noted that the extreme chemistry on icy dust grains at -250°C likely produced erythrulose, indicating that biochemistry-relevant molecules can form under conditions unlike those on Earth.
Why it matters: The discovery of erythrulose in interstellar space implies that key organic compounds for life were available before Earth formed, potentially delivered via comets and asteroids during the Late Heavy Bombardment — a process that could have seeded up to 50 million tonnes of sugar to early Earth, significantly shaping the planet’s prebiotic chemistry.
