https://www.innovationnewsnetwork.com/webb-detects-complex-organic-molecules-12-billion-light-years-from-earth/33698/
Webb detects complex organic molecules 12 billion light-years from Earth
US researchers have identified complex organic molecules 12 billion light-years from Earth using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).
Conducted by experts from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Texas A&M University, the research detected organic molecules in SPT0418-47 – the most distant galaxy these molecules have ever been discovered.
These types of organic molecules are also found on Earth in smoke, soot, and smog, and are the essential building blocks for supporting early forms of life.
The breakthrough is the latest achieved by the unparalleled capabilities of the recently launched JWST and provides vital insights into the complex chemical interactions that forged galaxies in the early Universe.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign graduate student Kedar Phadke, who led the technical development of the team’s Webb observations, said: “Discoveries like this are precisely what Webb was built to do: understand the earliest stages of the Universe in new and exciting ways.
“It’s amazing that we can identify organic molecules billions of light-years away that we’re familiar with here on Earth, even if they show up in ways we don’t like, like smog and smoke. It’s also a powerful statement about the amazing capabilities of Webb that we’ve never had before.”
SPT0418-47 provides a look at the early Universe
The SPT0418-47 galaxy was initially discovered in 2013 by the National Science Foundation’s South Pole Telescope and has subsequently been studied by various observatories, including the radio telescope ALMA and the Hubble Space Telescope.