All the chemical ingredients of life are found on Enceladus. Free Technical Library News

NEWS OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, NOVELTY IN ELECTRONICS
Free technical library / timeline

All the chemical ingredients of life found on Enceladus

25.12.2022

Phosphorus, a key component of DNA and RNA molecules, has been discovered in the ocean of Saturn's moon. It is now known that Enceladus has all the basic elements that make up biomolecules - everything necessary for the emergence of life.

Enceladus is one of the major moons of Saturn. Its surface is covered with a thick layer of ice, from the faults of which geysers are knocked out from time to time, indicating that there, at a depth, there is a fairly large ocean of liquid water. This makes Enceladus one of the most promising places to look for extraterrestrial life. This possibility is also indicated by the analysis of its water. Both methane and more complex organic molecules appear in it.

Over the years of research, compounds of hydrogen and oxygen, carbon, nitrogen and sulfur have been found in the geysers of Enceladus - almost all the ingredients that make up biomolecules. And recently, the last element was added to this list, phosphorus, which serves as a key component of nucleic acids. This was announced by Yasuhito Sekine, who spoke at a recent meeting of the American Geophysical Society (AGU) in Chicago.

Sekine and colleagues at the Tokyo Institute of Technology used data from the Cassini probe. Working in the Saturn system, the device collected information about the chemical composition of not only the planet and satellites, but also its brilliant rings. In this case, scientists were interested in the substances of the E ring, where the substance thrown out by the geysers of Enceladus falls. Among them were particles exceptionally rich in sodium phosphate.

Judging by their quantity, the subglacial ocean on the satellite can contain this substance in concentrations from one to 20 millimoles, which is orders of magnitude higher than in the Earth's oceans, where phosphorus is an element that is extremely scarce and in demand. The authors of the work suggest that on Enceladus it enters the water from the bottom, when apatites dissolve in it, which are found in abundance in some meteorites, which means that they were in the early solar system when the satellite was formed.

The find makes Enceladus an even more fascinating and promising place in terms of finding traces of extraterrestrial life. Perhaps this will speed up work on such projects, including the ESA mission, so far scheduled to launch only after 2035.

<< Back: GE Haliade-X Offshore Wind Turbine 26.12.2022

>> Forward: Smart watch with a living organism inside 25.12.2022

Latest news of science and technology, new electronics:

The existence of an entropy rule for quantum entanglement has been proven 09.05.2024

Quantum mechanics continues to amaze us with its mysterious phenomena and unexpected discoveries. Recently, Bartosz Regula from the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing and Ludovico Lamy from the University of Amsterdam presented a new discovery that concerns quantum entanglement and its relation to entropy. Quantum entanglement plays an important role in modern quantum information science and technology. However, the complexity of its structure makes understanding and managing it challenging. Regulus and Lamy's discovery shows that quantum entanglement follows an entropy rule similar to that for classical systems. This discovery opens new perspectives in the field of quantum information science and technology, deepening our understanding of quantum entanglement and its connection to thermodynamics. The results of the study indicate the possibility of reversibility of entanglement transformations, which could greatly simplify their use in various quantum technologies. Opening a new rule ... >>

Mini air conditioner Sony Reon Pocket 5 09.05.2024

Summer is a time for relaxation and travel, but often the heat can turn this time into an unbearable torment. Meet a new product from Sony - the Reon Pocket 5 mini-air conditioner, which promises to make summer more comfortable for its users. Sony has introduced a unique device - the Reon Pocket 5 mini-conditioner, which provides body cooling on hot days. With it, users can enjoy coolness anytime, anywhere by simply wearing it around their neck. This mini air conditioner is equipped with automatic adjustment of operating modes, as well as temperature and humidity sensors. Thanks to innovative technologies, Reon Pocket 5 adjusts its operation depending on the user's activity and environmental conditions. Users can easily adjust the temperature using a dedicated mobile app connected via Bluetooth. Additionally, specially designed T-shirts and shorts are available for convenience, to which a mini air conditioner can be attached. The device can oh ... >>

Energy from space for Starship 08.05.2024

Producing solar energy in space is becoming more feasible with the advent of new technologies and the development of space programs. The head of the startup Virtus Solis shared his vision of using SpaceX's Starship to create orbital power plants capable of powering the Earth. Startup Virtus Solis has unveiled an ambitious project to create orbital power plants using SpaceX's Starship. This idea could significantly change the field of solar energy production, making it more accessible and cheaper. The core of the startup's plan is to reduce the cost of launching satellites into space using Starship. This technological breakthrough is expected to make solar energy production in space more competitive with traditional energy sources. Virtual Solis plans to build large photovoltaic panels in orbit, using Starship to deliver the necessary equipment. However, one of the key challenges ... >>

New method for creating powerful batteries 08.05.2024

With the development of technology and the expanding use of electronics, the issue of creating efficient and safe energy sources is becoming increasingly urgent. Researchers at the University of Queensland have unveiled a new approach to creating high-power zinc-based batteries that could change the landscape of the energy industry. One of the main problems with traditional water-based rechargeable batteries was their low voltage, which limited their use in modern devices. But thanks to a new method developed by scientists, this drawback has been successfully overcome. As part of their research, scientists turned to a special organic compound - catechol. It turned out to be an important component that can improve battery stability and increase its efficiency. This approach has led to a significant increase in the voltage of zinc-ion batteries, making them more competitive. According to scientists, such batteries have several advantages. They have b ... >>

Alcohol content of warm beer 07.05.2024

Beer, as one of the most common alcoholic drinks, has its own unique taste, which can change depending on the temperature of consumption. A new study by an international team of scientists has found that beer temperature has a significant impact on the perception of alcoholic taste. The study, led by materials scientist Lei Jiang, found that at different temperatures, ethanol and water molecules form different types of clusters, which affects the perception of alcoholic taste. At low temperatures, more pyramid-like clusters form, which reduces the pungency of the "ethanol" taste and makes the drink taste less alcoholic. On the contrary, as the temperature increases, the clusters become more chain-like, resulting in a more pronounced alcoholic taste. This explains why the taste of some alcoholic drinks, such as baijiu, can change depending on temperature. The data obtained opens up new prospects for beverage manufacturers, ... >>

Random news from the Archive

Condors are about to fly 12.02.2002

Argentinean and Chilean scientists are preparing to release eight Andean condor chicks raised in special nurseries. In this way, they hope to save the legendary bird from extinction.

The condor is the heaviest bird in the world that can fly, with a wingspan of almost four meters. The condor feeds on carrion and is extremely useful as a nature orderly. Zoologists hope that sooner or later their pets will be reunited with their brethren. The condor is considered the national symbol of Chile. It is capable of reaching a height of five kilometers in flight and overcoming more than 300 kilometers per day. The only natural enemy of the condor is man, and this has led to the almost complete extermination of the bird.

Farmers mistakenly believe that the condor feeds on their living creatures, and ruthlessly exterminate it. In Venezuela, the condor is completely exterminated, in Colombia and Ecuador there are no more than a hundred individuals left, in Peru and Bolivia there are only a few more of them, and even in Argentina and Chile, where this bird is taken care of until you can not worry about its fate.

See full Archive of science and technology news, new electronics

All languages of this page

Home page | Library | Articles | Website map | Site Reviews