One of the key ingredients of life has been discovered in the most unexpected place in our Milky Way. Two radio telescopes have detected phosphorus at the edges of our galaxy. Phosphorus plays a crucial role in the creation of DNA and RNA in living organisms.
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Observations conducted by the University of Arizona challenge current assumptions about the formation of elements in the outer regions of our Milky Way.
For the current study, the team made observations using the 12-meter radio telescope at the Arizona Radio Observatory on Kitt Peak and a 30-meter radio telescope maintained by the Institute for Radio Astronomy in the Millimeter Range (IRAM) near Granada, Spain.
The data revealed the existence of phosphorus in WB89-621, a molecular cloud located about 74,000 light-years from the center of our Milky Way. The presence of phosphorus monoxide and phosphorus nitride was detected in the region by the telescopes.
" The discovery extends the presence of phosphorus nearly twice as far as where it was previously known to exist ," the statement said .
In addition to the building block of life, phosphorus, other elements vital to life include hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur.
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Elements such as carbon, oxygen and nitrogen are known to be created in lower-mass stars, which are thought to be more prevalent near the outskirts of our galaxy. As these low-mass stars near the end of their lives, they release these elements into space.
"To produce phosphorus, a violent event is necessary. It is believed that phosphorus is created during supernova, which require a star with a mass at least 20 times that of the Sun," said Lucy Ziurys, professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Astronomy, and an astronomer at Steward University.
Massive star formation is not expected at the outer edges of our Milky Way Galaxy, due to the decreasing density of matter as we move away from the core . As a result, these stars cannot acquire enough mass to end their lives in supernova explosions.
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So, the new research suggests that the diffusion of phosphorus does not depend only on these explosions.
Source: interestingengineering
