Cosmic dust contains all the elements needed for life but has previously been considered too rare to have acted as a ‘fertilizer’ for prebiotic chemistry. Now, using a combination of astrophysical and geological models, it is revealed that cosmic dust could have gently accumulated on the surface of early Earth in sufficient quantities to promote the chemical reactions that led to first life.
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References
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This is a summary of: Walton, C. R. et al. Cosmic dust fertilization of glacial prebiotic chemistry on early Earth. Nat. Astron. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-024-02212-z (2024).
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Cosmic dust may have driven the geochemical origins of life on Earth. Nat Astron 8, 554–555 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-024-02213-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-024-02213-y
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