Cosmochemistry
Cosmochemistry (from
History
In 1938, Swiss mineralogist Victor Goldschmidt and his colleagues compiled a list of what they called "cosmic abundances" based on their analysis of several terrestrial and meteorite samples.[2] Goldschmidt justified the inclusion of meteorite composition data into his table by claiming that terrestrial rocks were subjected to a significant amount of chemical change due to the inherent processes of the Earth and the atmosphere. This meant that studying terrestrial rocks exclusively would not yield an accurate overall picture of the chemical composition of the cosmos. Therefore, Goldschmidt concluded that extraterrestrial material must also be included to produce more accurate and robust data. This research is considered to be the foundation of modern cosmochemistry.[1]
During the 1950s and 1960s, cosmochemistry became more accepted as a science. Harold Urey, widely considered to be one of the fathers of cosmochemistry,[1] engaged in research that eventually led to an understanding of the origin of the elements and the chemical abundance of stars. In 1956, Urey and his colleague, German scientist Hans Suess, published the first table of cosmic abundances to include isotopes based on meteorite analysis.[3]
The continued refinement of analytical instrumentation throughout the 1960s, especially that of mass spectrometry, allowed cosmochemists to perform detailed analyses of the isotopic abundances of elements within meteorites. in 1960, John Reynolds determined, through the analysis of short-lived nuclides within meteorites, that the elements of the Solar System were formed before the Solar System itself[4] which began to establish a timeline of the processes of the early Solar System.
Meteorites
The most primitive meteorites also contain a small amount of material (< 0.1%) which is now recognized to be
Recent findings by
Comets
On 30 July 2015, scientists reported that upon the first touchdown of the
Research
This section appears to be slanted towards recent events. (January 2017) |
In 2004, scientists reported
In August 2009, NASA scientists identified one of the fundamental chemical building-blocks of life (the amino acid glycine) in a comet for the first time.[14]
In 2010,
In August 2011, findings by
In October 2011, scientists reported that
On August 29, 2012, astronomers at
In September 2012,
In 2013, the
In January 2014, NASA reported that
In February 2014,
See also
- Abundance of the chemical elements
- Astrochemistry
- Extraterrestrial materials
- Geochemistry
- List of interstellar and circumstellar molecules
- Molecules in stars
- Nucleocosmochronology
- Stellar chemistry
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0-521-87862-3.
- ^ Goldschmidt, Victor (1938). Geochemische Verteilungsgestze der Elemente IX. Oslo: Skrifter Utgitt av Det Norske Vidensk. Akad.
- .
- .
- .
- ^ PMID 21836052.
- ^ a b Steigerwald, John (8 August 2011). "NASA Researchers: DNA Building Blocks Can Be Made in Space". NASA. Archived from the original on 2020-05-11. Retrieved 2011-08-10.
- ^ a b "DNA Building Blocks Can Be Made in Space, NASA Evidence Suggests". ScienceDaily. 9 August 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-09.
- ^ Jordans, Frank (30 July 2015). "Philae probe finds evidence that comets can be cosmic labs". The Washington Post. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 23 December 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
- ^ "Science on the Surface of a Comet". European Space Agency. 30 July 2015. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
- PMID 26228139.
- ^ a b Battersby, S. (2004). "Space molecules point to organic origins". New Scientist. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
- ^ S2CID 14545794.
- ^ "'Life chemical' detected in comet". NASA. BBC News. 18 August 2009. Retrieved 6 March 2010.
- S2CID 119121764.
- ^ Atkinson, Nancy (27 October 2010). "Buckyballs Could Be Plentiful in the Universe". Universe Today. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
- ^ Chow, Denise (26 October 2011). "Discovery: Cosmic Dust Contains Organic Matter from Stars". Space.com. Retrieved 2011-10-26.
- ^ "Astronomers Discover Complex Organic Matter Exists Throughout the Universe". ScienceDaily. 26 October 2011. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
- S2CID 4419859.
- ^ Than, Ker (August 29, 2012). "Sugar Found In Space". National Geographic. Archived from the original on September 1, 2012. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
- ^ "Sweet! Astronomers spot sugar molecule near star". Associated Press. August 29, 2012. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
- S2CID 14205612.
- ^ a b "NASA Cooks Up Icy Organics to Mimic Life's Origins". Space.com. September 20, 2012. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
- ^ S2CID 5541727.
- S2CID 118522676.
- ^ Finley, Dave (2013-02-28). "Discoveries Suggest Icy Cosmic Start for Amino Acids and DNA Ingredients". The National Radio Astronomy Observatory. Nrao.edu. Retrieved 2018-07-17.
- ^ PMID 24458635.
- ^ "Exploring Martian Habitability". Science. 343 (6169): 345–452. 24 January 2014. Retrieved 24 January 2014.[clarification needed]
- ^ "Curiosity Mars". Science (Search results). 24 January 2014. Retrieved 24 January 2014.[unreliable source?]
- S2CID 52836398.
- ^ Hoover, Rachel (February 21, 2014). "Need to Track Organic Nano-Particles Across the Universe? NASA's Got an App for That". NASA. Archived from the original on May 10, 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2014.
External links
- Planetary Science Research Discoveries Educational journal with articles about cosmochemistry, meteorites, and planetary science