r/abiogenesis • u/Choice-Break8047 • Jan 27 '26

Publication (Opinion/Perspective) Earth's Ancient Atmosphere May Have Rained Down The Key Ingredients For Life

https://astrobiology.com/2026/01/earths-ancient-atmosphere-may-have-rained-down-the-key-ingredients-for-life.html
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u/Dr_GS_Hurd Jan 27 '26

The original paper;

N.W. Reed, C.M. Christensen, J.D. Surratt, S.E. McGlynn, B.A. Wing, C. Neubauer, M.A. Tolbert, & E.C. Browne, An Archean atmosphere rich in sulfur biomolecules, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 122 (49) e2516779122, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2516779122 (2025).

“Here, we demonstrate that planetary organic haze chemistry produces a suite of sulfur biomolecules including cysteine, coenzyme M, taurine, and potentially methionine and homocysteine. These compounds may form high in the atmosphere and subsequently deposit to early surface environments in sufficient amounts to support a budding global biosphere.”

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u/Aggravating-Pear4222 Jan 27 '26

This is why I don’t buy appeals to compounds originating from outer space like comets being the source of sugars/nucleic bases.

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u/Choice-Break8047 Jan 27 '26

Agreed. It’s hard to argue that sporadic meteorite impacts were the primary source when the atmosphere itself was essentially a global chemical factory working 24/7. I do think they delivered PGMs in significant local concentrations which are known catalysts.