glucose Archives

A team of Japanese and US scientists have discovered the bio-essential sugars ribose and glucose in samples of asteroid Bennu that were collected by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission. This finding builds on the earlier discovery of nucleobases (the genetic components of DNA and RNA), phosphate, and amino acids (the building blocks of proteins) in the Bennu samples, showing that the molecular ingredients of life could have been delivered to early Earth by meteorites. Download this graphic from NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio website: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14932 NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona/Dan Gallagher

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Icy Worlds, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Origin & Evolution of Life, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return

Sugars And Stardust Found In NASA’s Asteroid Bennu Samples

by Keith CowingDecember 2, 2025December 2, 2025

The asteroid Bennu continues to provide new clues to scientists’ biggest questions about the formation of the early solar system and the origins of life.

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Cryobiology, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Radiation, Status Report

Ionizing Radiation Exposure On Arrokoth Shapes A Sugar World

by Keith CowingDecember 9, 2024December 9, 2024

The flyby of the New Horizons spacecraft of the Kuiper Belt Object Arrokoth revealed its reddish appearance and unraveled the unexpected presence of a methanol-rich surface.