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Prebiotic chemistry on the rocks

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Organic compounds called nitriles have been detected in material surrounding a young star. The finding hints at a vast reservoir of ice and volatile species that can seed the surfaces of young rocky planets or moons. See Letter p.198

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Figure 1: HL Tau disk.

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References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geoffrey A. Blake is at the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA.,

    Geoffrey A. Blake

  2. Edwin A. Bergin is in the Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA.,

    Edwin A. Bergin

Authors
  1. Geoffrey A. Blake
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  2. Edwin A. Bergin
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Correspondence to Geoffrey A. Blake or Edwin A. Bergin.

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Blake, G., Bergin, E. Prebiotic chemistry on the rocks. Nature 520, 161–162 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/520161a

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