An atomic-scale study of the Tagish Lake meteorite finds that its framboidal, or raspberry-like, magnetite grains formed in a sodium-enriched, high-pH environment, which would allow a change in amino acid orientation on timescales of years, providing insight into the chemistry of the earliest fluids in the Solar System and implying that a lack of amino acids in the meteorite is possibly due to a lack of precursor materials.
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Article #20-03276: "Evidence for sodium-rich alkaline water in the Tagish Lake parent body and implications for amino acid synthesis and racemization," by Lee F. White et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Lee F. White, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, CANADA; e-mail: < lwhite@rom.on.ca >
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences