The first set of data regarding the samples gathered during the OSIRIS-REx mission has been released by NASA and its partners.
"The findings do not show evidence for life itself, but they do suggest the conditions necessary for the emergence of life were widespread across the early solar system, increasing the odds life could have formed on other planets and moons," according to a news release from NASA.
The OSIRIS-REx mission collected pebbles and dust from the asteroid Bennu on its own using some pretty amazing technology. Bennu represents what was going on in the solar system some 4.5 billion years ago.
Asteroids can serve as time capsules. On September 24, 2023, the capsule made a safe return to Earth after traveling 3.9 billion miles.
According to a study on Bennu that was published in the journal Nature Astronomy, the samples included five nucleobases and fourteen amino acids that are also present in Earthly living forms.
High concentrations of formaldehyde and ammonia were also found in the Bennu samples; under the right circumstances, these two substances can combine to produce complex compounds like amino acids.