Formation of bioorganic compounds in planetary atmospheres by cosmic radiation

Abstract

Simulated planetary atomospheres (mixtures of simple gases) were irradiated with high energy particles to simulate an action of cosmic rays. When a mixture of carbon monoxide, nitrogen and water was irradiated with 2.8–40 MeV protons, a wide variety of bioorganic compounds including amino acids, imidazole, and uracil were identified in the products. The amount of amino acids was proportional to the energy deposit to the system. Various kinds of simulated planetary atmospheres, such as “Titan type” and “Jovian type”, were also irradiated with high energy protons, and gave amino acids in the hydrolyzed products. Since cosmic rays are a universal energy source in space, it was suggested that formation of bioorganic compounds in planetary atmospheres is irevitable in the course of cosmic evolution.