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Researchers have found water and organic matter on the asteroid Themis

The researchers who made the discovery suggest sending a spacecraft there. However the puzzle is how ice can cover an asteroid so close to the Sun without evaporating, the answer is that it is most likely regenerated from underground reservoirs

The orbit of Themis in the asteroid belt, Themis is one of the largest asteroids in the asteroid belt. Illustration: Josh Emery, University of Tennessee in Knoxville
The orbit of Themis in the asteroid belt, Themis is one of the largest asteroids in the asteroid belt. Illustration: Josh Emery, University of Tennessee in Knoxville

We usually think of an asteroid as a dark, dry, lifeless piece of rock, like the image of the asteroid Itakawa, taken by the Japanese space agency's Yabusa spacecraft. However, some asteroids are really small planets, after all. Researchers have found evidence of the existence of water and organic materials on the asteroid 24 Themis. Research on the subject was published last Thursday (April 29, 2010) in the journal Nature.

This discovery is exciting for two reasons - it is evidence supporting the idea that asteroids and not just comets could have been responsible for bringing water and organic materials to Earth. And the second reason - if NASA does move forward with the idea of ​​sending a manned spacecraft to an asteroid, and probably unmanned spacecraft that will precede it, Tamis could be an interesting target.

Themis, from its low number it is clear that it must be relatively large, because the asteroids are marked with numbers according to the order of discovery - and in past centuries, size played a significant role in the ability to locate the celestial body. Indeed, it is an asteroid with a diameter of 200 kilometers, orbiting the Sun approximately halfway between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

Josh Emery of the University of Tennessee and Andrew Rivkin of Johns Hopkins University, who used NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and measured the spectrum of infrared sunlight reflected from the asteroid. They found that the spectrum contained signs of frozen water. They determined that 24 solution is covered by a thin layer of ice. They also identified organic materials.

"The organic substances we found have long and complex molecules. When they fall on Earth as meteorites, they could have given a boost to the development of life," Emery said.

The finding of ice on the surface of Themis was somewhat surprising due to its relative proximity to the sun, which should cause the ice to evaporate. Additionally, the surface temperature is too warm for the ice to stick for long.

"This indicates that ice is a common resource on Themis and possibly on many other asteroids as well. And therefore the ice is constantly being re-created. It is possible that this is done by gasses escaping from ice buried within the asteroid leaking through fissures to the surface or when vapors are rapidly and randomly emitted when a solution is hit by space debris."

Ice on an asteroid may be the answer to the puzzle of where water on Earth came from, Emery said.

"Asteroids were thought to be a dry place, and it now appears that when the asteroids and planets first formed in the early days of the solar system, the ice spread far beyond the central belt." Emery said. "Extending this updated picture to other solar systems, the building blocks of life - water and organic matter - may be common in the habitable zone of stars. The next few years will be really fascinating when the subject will be investigated in other asteroids as well.

For the news in Universe Today

31 תגובות

  1. M Kal: I am always optimistic about people. But it could certainly take several decades.

    Hezi, thanks to Google's cache, the site you created will remain in memory there for a long time to come.
    I personally added straight to favorites. I will visit every day!
    Maybe you will be able to convince some more ALL STARS here of the scientist to join your ranks and then this will be without a doubt the best blog in the entire universe.
    It wouldn't hurt any of us to giggle and smile a little. Hope you update often.

  2. Congratulations, Chazi.

    You are both studying academic physics (see my response about Callisto) and are free to set up a new website that will contradict everything the world knows about another subject - there is no doubt that you are a multi-tasking person.

    I also appreciate your directness in presenting the work method as it is presented in note 24
    In the first step we will contradict what all the people who understand the subject think
    We will not "test", "examine", "offer alternatives" or all these strange ideas - we will go straight to the dirty work.

    Be strong and courageous.

  3. enough:
    No way!
    Like today he will say: reality is wrong! I'm right!

  4. I predict that in a few days, or months, maybe even years, Hazi will stand somewhere and all he will be able to say about this theory of his is "oops..."

  5. Hezi,

    An outstanding idea. You will be able to gather the opponents of evolution to you, and form a thorough and thorough alternative there to all the thousands of scientists and doctors who are not ready to see your truth, and are not open to your most important innovations, even though they have nothing to do with reality.

    (On this occasion, I sincerely hope that you will significantly reduce your "broken turntable" on this site).

    rise and succeed!

  6. LISTS

    This is a platform I wrote myself,
    Therefore it will be easy for me to change it as needed.

    All those interested in the subject are invited,
    And you are invited to bring "bulldozers" to Darwin's teachings...

    The first step will be to contradict the accepted theory,
    and then present an alternative theory...

  7. Hezi, thanks for the referral.
    Some notes:
    - There are much more convenient platforms than the one you use for writing blogs (blogger, wordpress)
    - I didn't see any explanation of the alternative theory there... neither basics nor material for advanced students.
    – For starters, could you state just a few of the basics of your theory?

  8. Why are you pressing Chazi to clarify his theory and not giving him time to come up with it?

  9. It's awfully easy to dismiss Darwin's theory and basically any other theory: all you need is a few dozen hours of watching National Geographic and Discovery and wandering around the science website.
    Who needs scientists when there is internet and television?

  10. to my chest:

    It will be much easier to understand you if you elaborate and expand on your words, whether it is here or on the designated blog.
    Regarding Darwin - indeed it is difficult to abandon him - but if and when the scientists (and the "scientists") abandon Darwin, it will be when they are presented with a worthy alternative, backed by observations.

  11. Hey, I agree with Lisa. I am also interested once and for all to understand what you are saying and what you are relying on.

  12. Chest:

    I am very interested, please direct me to the basics and if you can then to more information.

  13. LISTS

    I already wrote the basics…

    I'm not interested in convincing anyone.

    If the basics seem to you,
    Time will be needed to digest the change in the perception of the formation of life.

    If you are responsive enough,
    I may start a blog specifically for this topic.

  14. "chest",
    Michael does not "disparage" "himself" "he" just says "you" what we all think.
    By the way, have you already "solved" the "question" in "physics" that was presented to "you"?

  15. Chest:
    (or "chest")
    Could you please lay out for us your theory of the formation of life in full.

  16. Avi 8

    Do you remember how many theories there were and how much time of "scientists" was wasted to develop theories of how life was created here "by itself"?

    Michael: Keep humiliating yourself. You are just showing who you really are…

  17. enough:
    What is "when you were little"?
    Do you know someone smaller than him?

    Avi:
    Do you enjoy his trashiness?
    Why don't you turn it off?

  18. What does Darwin have to do with it? What do you have from Darwin? Did a boy named Darwin bully you when you were little?

  19. From tests of the type of water found in comets and asteroids,
    It turns out that the water on Earth came from asteroids and not comets.

    It is complete nonsense to decide right now to send a person to an asteroid.
    Most likely there is primitive life there that is similar to any other asteroid.

    It is essential and possible to do the first tests using a tube with robots.

    Another nail in the coffin of Darwin's theory...

  20. I, the theory does not say that life started on an asteroid but on some planet with favorable conditions. The cells were transported by an asteroid that was created by the explosion of the star or by hitting it and flying its parts into space that arrived here in the form of asteroids.

    To date, no asteroid with bacteria in it has been found, with the exception of one with controversial signs that may have been created by bacteria and probably originated from Mars. Therefore, there is currently no confirmation for or against the panspermia theory.

  21. explain something to me please
    Some scientists claim that the origin of life on Earth is from meteorites/asteroids that had biological materials on them.. How does that make sense? And where did the materials get to the asteroids? From other asteroids? Why does this theory even sound logical?
    It makes the most sense that life began on Earth, because the combination of water for a task force and an atmosphere (no matter how toxic) sounds like the best combination for life, and not necessarily a body without an atmosphere and weather flying at dizzying speed in a complete vacuum...

  22. The idea that asteroids brought water to Earth is not new, even today thousands of tons of water fall on Earth from space,

  23. Well, first we need to find out why this asteroid is called Themis.

  24. Maybe we can immigrate there, establish a colony there, and leave the Middle East to those who insist on fighting for it?

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