(ORDO NEWS) — In a recent study published in the journal Sciences Advances, an international team of scientists led by the Technical University of Munich studied the Martian meteorite Tissint, which fell on July 18 near the village of Tissint in Morocco.
2011, when pieces of a meteorite were found about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the village.
What makes Tissint intriguing is the presence of “tremendous organic diversity,” the study notes, which could help scientists better understand whether life ever existed on Mars, and even Earth‘s geological history.
“Mars and Earth share many aspects of their evolution,” Dr. Philipp Schmitt-Kopplin, director of the Research Unit for Analytical Biochemistry at the Technical University of Munich and lead author of the study, said in a statement.
“And while life originated and flourished on our home planet, the question of whether it ever existed on Mars is a very hot topic for research. requires a deeper knowledge of water, organic molecules and the reactive surfaces of our neighboring planet.”
Organic molecules are molecules that are made up of carbon atoms bonded to hydrogen atoms, but can also contain oxygen, nitrogen, and other elements.
The four main classes of organic molecules include carbohydrates, proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids.
On Earth, organic molecules are analogous to life, but the study notes that abiotic organic chemistry, a non-biological process, has been observed “in other Martian meteorites”.
“Understanding the processes and sequence of events that shaped this rich organic abundance will reveal new details about the habitability of Mars and possibly the reactions that could lead to the formation of life,” said Dr. Mars sample return campaign team for NASA‘s Perseverance rover and co-author of the study. p>
Doctor. Steele has also done extensive research on organic material found in Martian meteorites, including Tissint.
For the study, the researchers examined the entire organic composition of Tissint and determined “diverse chemical composition and abundance in complex meteorites.” molecules,” the study notes, and also helps uncover past geological processes in the crust and mantle of the red planet.
The researchers also identified a variety of organic magnesium compounds never seen before on Mars, which may provide new data on the geochemical processes that formed the interior of Mars, and possibly establish a link between the mineral evolution of the red planet and the carbon cycle.
NASA’s upcoming Mars sample return mission could provide even greater insight into both the organic and mineral composition of the red planet.
Dr. Schmitt-Kopplin recently told Universe Today that such a mission could be as successful as Japan‘s Hayabusa-2 sample return mission because they “were able to show that the meteorites reflect well the chemistry found in the return mission, we we can probably do the same.”
Tissint has a total weight of 7 kg (15 lb) and is currently the fifth meteorite classified as of Martian origin. years ago due to some violent event.
Tissint draws some parallels with one of the most famous meteorites of Martian origin found on Earth, ALH 84001, which was the subject of scrutiny in the late 1990s when it was initially thought to contain microfossils, results that have since been proven unconvincing.
“ALH 84001 was one of the best-studied Martian meteorites because it was found in Antarctica and thus was “mothballed” in low-pollution ice.” Dr. Schmitt-Kopplin recently told Universe Today.
“At that time, looking at the molecules of life in the diverse chemistry of this meteorite, and observing additional biological features in microscopy, we too quickly concluded that we had found life on Mars.”
What new secrets of Mars Tissint, future meteorites and future samples returned from Mars will reveal to us about the red planet? Only time will tell, and that’s why we do science!
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