Researchers Form 2-Amino-Acid Peptide at Minus 260C in Interstellar Ice
Updated
Updated · spacedaily.com · Jul 13
Researchers Form 2-Amino-Acid Peptide at Minus 260C in Interstellar Ice
1 articles · Updated · spacedaily.com · Jul 13
Summary
A Nature Astronomy study found proton irradiation of frozen glycine produced glycylglycine—the simplest dipeptide—under space-like vacuum at nearly minus 260C.
The team used isotopically labeled glycine, infrared spectroscopy and high-resolution mass spectrometry to show a peptide bond formed without liquid water, alongside water by-products and other organics.
The result suggests cosmic-ray-like radiation can drive constructive chemistry in icy dust grains by creating reactive fragments that recombine inside interstellar ice.
Glycine has already been detected in meteorites and comets, but this experiment extends the chemistry a step further by showing amino acids could link before stars and planets fully form.
The work does not show proteins or life forming in space; it establishes a plausible laboratory pathway that future observations and sample-return missions will need to test in real extraterrestrial material.
Did life's fundamental recipe originate in interstellar ice, long before Earth even existed?
If cosmic radiation can forge life's building blocks, where else should we be looking for extraterrestrial life?
Breakthrough Discovery: Peptides Formed in Cosmic Ice Reveal Universal Pathways to Life’s Building Blocks
Overview
In January 2026, scientists achieved a major breakthrough by forming a simple peptide, glycylglycine, under conditions that mimic interstellar space. By freezing glycine at extremely low temperatures and exposing it to radiation, they showed that peptide bonds—essential links in proteins—can form in the harsh, cold environments between stars. This discovery reveals that the building blocks of life can arise far from planets, suggesting that complex organic molecules may be common throughout the universe. These findings challenge the idea that life’s chemistry needs warm, watery worlds, opening new perspectives on how and where life might begin.