handedness Archives

Calculated total spin vector and its direction. Spin polarization illustrated by S (blue arrow) for a spin-orbit perturbed p-like excited state in the molecule studied in (8). A weak magnetic field along the x axis is applied to resolve the states. Here, the z axis points at the viewer. Reproduced from (19).-- Science Advances

Astrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Panspermia, Status Report

Understanding Life And Homochirality

by Keith CowingApril 29, 2026April 29, 2026

Two fundamental questions have puzzled scientists for more than 150 years. “How did life become homochiral?” and “why was this specific handedness selected?”

A diagram of left-handed and right-handed versions of the amino acid isovaline, found in the Murchison meteorite. NASA

Astrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Meteorites & Asteroids, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Astrochemistry: The Mystery of Life’s Handedness Deepens

by Keith CowingNovember 22, 2024November 22, 2024

The mystery of why life uses molecules with specific orientations has deepened with a NASA-funded discovery that RNA — a key molecule thought to have potentially held the instructions for […]