Asteroid Ryugu Samples Reveal Comet Particles and Organic Matter

The discovery supports the theory that comets may have delivered the building blocks of life to Earth.

Japan's Hayabusa2 mission returned samples from asteroid Ryugu, revealing traces of comet particles and organic matter.
The samples contained over 20 amino acids, vitamin B3, and evidence of micrometeoroid impacts, suggesting comets may have delivered life's building blocks to Earth.
Analysis of melt splashes on Ryugu's surface showed they mainly consist of silicate glasses with voids and small inclusions of spherical iron sulfides.
The carbonaceous materials found lack nitrogen and oxygen, indicating they formed from cometary organic matter via the evaporation of volatiles during impact-induced heating.
The findings support the panspermia theory, suggesting that cometary matter transported to the near-Earth region could be the seeds of life once delivered from space to Earth.