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Updated: Apr 14, 2026

Conducting Miller-Urey Experiments

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Published on: January 21, 2014

Prebiotic chemical evolution in the astrophysical context.

L M Ziurys¹, G R Adande, J L Edwards

¹Department of Chemistry, University of Arizona, 933 N. Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ, 85721-0065, USA, lziurys@email.arizona.edu.

Origins of Life and Evolution of the Biosphere : the Journal of the International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life

|April 21, 2015

Summary

Interstellar molecules, including carbon-rich compounds, cycle from dying stars through planetary nebulae to dense clouds. This interstellar material likely influences prebiotic chemistry on planets.

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Area of Science:

* Astrochemistry
* Astrobiology
* Molecular Astrophysics

Background:

* The interstellar medium (ISM) contains abundant molecular material linked to star and planet formation.
* Radio and millimeter-wave astronomy, supported by laboratory spectroscopy, are key tools for studying gas-phase molecules.

Purpose of the Study:

* To investigate the cycling of molecular matter from dying stars to nascent solar systems.
* To understand the survival and transport of carbon-containing molecules through stellar evolution phases.
* To explore the influence of interstellar molecules on prebiotic chemistry.

Main Methods:

* High-resolution laboratory spectroscopy.
* Radio and millimeter-wave astronomical observations.
* Analysis of molecular composition in circumstellar ejecta, planetary nebulae, and dense clouds.

Main Results:

* Stellar ejecta and planetary nebulae contain diverse, carbon-rich molecules (e.g., H2CO, HCN, HCO(+), CCH).
* Polyatomic, carbon-containing molecules survive the planetary nebula phase and seed the ISM.
* Organic molecules are detected in dense clouds, but organophosphorus compounds remain undetected.

Conclusions:

* Gas-phase molecules are transported from dying stars to the ISM, influencing cloud chemistry.
* Interstellar molecular material is incorporated into solar system planetesimals.
* Interstellar synthesis likely plays a role in prebiotic chemistry on planetary surfaces.