THE PHILAE LANDER'S DISCOVERY OF ORGANIC MOLECULES ON 67/CHURYUMOV-GERASIMENKO
Editor's note: Dylan P. ('17) wrote this essay to address a question regarding organic molecules that came up in his chemistry class.
“It's amazing to me that this spacecraft has been traveling for 10 years and yet its battery can only live for just a matter of days. I think it's also really great that we have made some progress having to do with our study of the solar system and I'm excited to find out what we will learn from this spacecraft,” (Righter, 2014).
On November 12, 2014, the European Space Agency’s Philae lander (attached to the Rosetta spacecraft) landed on a 2.5-mile wide comet called 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Philae spent ten years traveling through space to reach the aforementioned comet. The lander then collected information for sixty-four hours. Afterwards, it went into hibernation mode and then used solar panels to recharge. The spacecraft can use the energy from the solar panels to operate for about one hour every other day. Scientists hope to make many discoveries about the -153°C ice and dust covered comet, one of which being whether or not comets contribute to the Earth’s oceans and inhabitability (Chang, 2014; Dvorsky, 2014).
Before going into hibernation mode, the Philae lander collected information about the comet suggesting the presence of organic compounds, and sent the information back to Earth. From Philae’s observations, scientists have determined that the comet contains organic molecules. The fact that organic molecules are present is a significant discovery; the presence of organic molecules “feeds into the idea that comets may have delivered the chemical prerequisites for life — compounds that could have kindled the genesis of life on our planet,” writes George Dvorsky (Dvorsky). Since we are still unaware of how life began on Earth, it is possible that asteroids could have provided components that contributed to Earth’s ability to be inhabited by life forms. However, it is dangerous to assume that organic molecules are automatically signs of life. Dvorsky says, “There are plenty of organic compounds [that are] devoid of life … [and] have nothing to do with living organisms." The European Space Agency has not released the specific type of organic molecule that was discovered, so it is too soon to make any assumptions about how comets contributed to Earth’s ability to inhabit life forms or whether or not the Earth’s oceans were formed by “melted comets,” (Dvorsky). Organic molecules can be divided into four categories: carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids (Hartsock, 2003). Something that would support some scientists’ hypotheses that comets contributed to the Earth’s inhabitability would be “if Philae discover[s] a set of specific organic molecules, like amino acids — the building block of proteins,” (Dvorsky). The Philae lander’s discoveries could be a breakthrough in what we know about how life arrived on Earth; however, they could also show that organic molecules and precursors for life came to this planet by different means that will hopefully be discovered in the future.
Before going into hibernation mode, the Philae lander collected information about the comet suggesting the presence of organic compounds, and sent the information back to Earth. From Philae’s observations, scientists have determined that the comet contains organic molecules. The fact that organic molecules are present is a significant discovery; the presence of organic molecules “feeds into the idea that comets may have delivered the chemical prerequisites for life — compounds that could have kindled the genesis of life on our planet,” writes George Dvorsky (Dvorsky). Since we are still unaware of how life began on Earth, it is possible that asteroids could have provided components that contributed to Earth’s ability to be inhabited by life forms. However, it is dangerous to assume that organic molecules are automatically signs of life. Dvorsky says, “There are plenty of organic compounds [that are] devoid of life … [and] have nothing to do with living organisms." The European Space Agency has not released the specific type of organic molecule that was discovered, so it is too soon to make any assumptions about how comets contributed to Earth’s ability to inhabit life forms or whether or not the Earth’s oceans were formed by “melted comets,” (Dvorsky). Organic molecules can be divided into four categories: carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids (Hartsock, 2003). Something that would support some scientists’ hypotheses that comets contributed to the Earth’s inhabitability would be “if Philae discover[s] a set of specific organic molecules, like amino acids — the building block of proteins,” (Dvorsky). The Philae lander’s discoveries could be a breakthrough in what we know about how life arrived on Earth; however, they could also show that organic molecules and precursors for life came to this planet by different means that will hopefully be discovered in the future.
Chang, Kenneth. "Landing on a Comet, a European Space Agency Mission Aims to Unlock the Mysteries of Earth." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Nov. 2014. Web. 06 Jan. 2015. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/13/science/space/european-space-agencys-spacecraft-lands-on-comets-surface.html?ref=science&_r=0>.
Dvorsky, George. "Philae's Discovery Of Organic Molecules Is Actually Not A Big Deal." Io9. N.p., 19 Nov. 2014. Web. 06 Jan. 2015. <http://io9.com/philaes-discovery-of-organic-molecules-is-actually-not-1660540896>.
Hartsock, Angela. "Major Elements in Biological Molecules:."Http://education-portal.com/. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Jan. 2015. <http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/major-elements-in-biological-molecules-proteins-nucleic-acids-carbohydrates-lipids.html#lesson>.
Dvorsky, George. "Philae's Discovery Of Organic Molecules Is Actually Not A Big Deal." Io9. N.p., 19 Nov. 2014. Web. 06 Jan. 2015. <http://io9.com/philaes-discovery-of-organic-molecules-is-actually-not-1660540896>.
Hartsock, Angela. "Major Elements in Biological Molecules:."Http://education-portal.com/. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Jan. 2015. <http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/major-elements-in-biological-molecules-proteins-nucleic-acids-carbohydrates-lipids.html#lesson>.
