Scientists find key RNA component on an asteroid for the first time

A scanning electron microscope image of a micrometeorite impact crater in a particle of asteroid Bennu material (Image source: NASA, and Zia Rahman)

Researchers studying the pieces of asteroid Bennu have discovered three ground-breaking things inside the samples — sugar, a mysterious gum-like object, and a huge amount of dust. These findings could tell us more about the early solar system and the origin of life.

Chibuike Okpara, Published 12/12/2025

Astronomy / Space Science

Scientists believe that asteroids contain life’s ingredients and delivered them to Earth when they collided with our planet billions of years ago. NASA’s OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security-Regolith Explorer) was launched to find more evidence to back these theories. The spacecraft returned to Earth in September 2023 with samples from asteroid Bennu. Since then, scientists have been unwrapping what secrets lie within the asteroid.

Recent research has revealed three interesting things from the Bennu samples. One group found sugar — ribose and glucose. This would be the first time that glucose would be found in an extraterrestrial sample.

Deoxyribose and ribose are key components of DNA and RNA, respectively. DNA and RNA are building blocks of life. Hence, finding sugar adds credibility to the theory that asteroids contained chemical components of life. But even more interestingly, no deoxyribose sugar was found in the Bennu samples. This supports the “RNA world” hypothesis. The hypothesis holds that life began with RNA molecules before DNA came into the scene.

Another group of researchers discovered a mysterious ancient material that behaves like gum. The material is extremely rich in nitrogen and oxygen. Analysis of the material made the researchers believe that this gum-like substance likely formed in the early days of the solar system — what astrophysicist Scott Sandford called the “Beginning of the beginning.”

On the Bennu samples, a separate group of researchers found dust — a lot of it. The dust is from stars that died before our solar system formed (presolar grains). Finding huge amounts of this dust suggests that Bennu’s parent asteroid formed in a region rich in exploding star material. It also suggests that some materials from Bennu escaped the altering effects of water or heat, leaving them exactly how they were billions of years ago.

The study on sugar was published in the journal Nature Geoscience, while the other two were published in Nature Astronomy.

Source(s)

Nature via NASA

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Chibuike Okpara - Tech Writer - 317 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2024

I have always been fascinated by technology and digital devices my entire life and even got addicted to it. I have always marveled at the intricacy of even the simplest digital devices and systems around us. I have been writing and publishing articles online for about 6 years now, just about a year ago, I found myself lost in the marvel of smartphones and laptops we have in our hands every day. I developed a passion for learning about new devices and technologies that come with them and at some point, I asked myself, "Why not get into writing tech articles?" It is useless to say I followed up the idea — it is evident. I am an open-minded individual who derives an infinite amount of joy from researching and discovering new information, I believe there is so much to learn and such a short life to live, so I put my time to good use — learning new things. I am a 'bookworm' of the internet and digital devices. When I am not writing, you will find me on my devices still, I do explore and admire the beauty of nature and creatures. I am a fast learner and quickly adapt to changes, always looking forward to new adventures.

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