alien life Scientists – Scientists have long searched for signs of life by looking for biosignatures – biological molecules such as amino acids and fatty acids. But detecting these compounds alone proves unreliable, as nonliving chemical processes can also produce them. Now, according to a study published in Nature Astronomy, a team led by Gideon Yoffe of Israel’s Weizmann Institute has proposed a better approach: studying not only which molecules are present, but how they are arranged.

Diversity as a Fingerprint of Life In the study, following ecological principles, scientists studied approximately 100 samples from asteroids, meteorites, fossils, microorganisms and soil. The study revealed that biological molecules have a unique organizational pattern. While amino acids produced by biological means exhibit higher diversity and are better distributed, fatty acids exhibit just the opposite – less diversity and are unevenly distributed.

Furthermore, unique features of biological molecules can be detected even in samples in poor condition. Indeed, the distinctive patterns found in dinosaur eggs indicate the possibility of discovering ancient microbial signatures on Mars, where the climate was once much more favorable.

Europa Clipper: An Unexpected Ally This method can be easily applied to the current mission carried out by NASA’s Europa Clipper, which is headed toward Jupiter’s moon Europa and is expected to reach it in 2031. Europa is believed to have an underground ocean containing at least twice the amount of water present in the oceans on Earth, and therefore, Europa is considered one of the best candidates for hosting life.

Europa Clipper has an onboard surface dust analyzer that analyzes ice particles collected from Europa’s surface along with the presence of amino acids.