30 November 2020
Researchers discover solid phosphorus in comet 67P
...the comet’s inner coma and collected by COSIMA, have identified a key element essential for life on Earth; phosphorus. Phosphorus is vital as it is used in the creation of DNA, cell membranes, and is required by all living organisms to produce energy...
14 April 2017
Cassini finds evidence for hydrothermal vent activity on Enceladus
... necessary ingredients are liquid water and the right chemical ingredients, primarily; carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulphur. From these current observations researchers have determined that nearly 98 percent of the gas in the...
14 September 2020
Possible signs of microbial life found in Venus' atmosphere
... in research published last year. Venus might be hot but phosphorus in the form of PH3 is only expected to form at... could be produced by aqueous or acid corrosion from phosphorus-containing impurities in iron. “The concentration of phosphine ...
01 November 2021
Curiosity finds organic molecules in Mars sand dune
..., spectral signatures matching derivatised phosphoric acid and phenol were detected. Although phosphine (PH3), the simplest phosphorus hydride, has been linked with the possible signs of microbial life found in Venus' atmosphere, the detection...
March 2018
Plumes on Europa - tasting an extra-terrestrial ocean
... an extensive period of time?) and access to essential elements - the basic elements needed for life as we know it: sulphur, phosphorus, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon and hydrogen. All of these criteria are met for Europa. One further fundamental...
09 October 2020
BepiColombo could search for signs of life as it flybys Venus next week
...Mercury. In September, a team led by Jane Greaves at Cardiff University detected the spectral signature of phosphine (PH3), a phosphorus-hydrogen compound that on Earth can only be made via industrial processes or via microbes that do not need ...
