January 10, 2011 - ScienceDaily
In a study that pushes the limits of observations currently possible from Earth, a team of NASA and European scientists recorded the "fingerprints" of mystery molecules in two distant galaxies, Andromeda and the Triangulum. Astronomers can count on one hand the number of galaxies examined so far for such fingerprints, which are thought to belong to large organic molecules, says the team's leader, Martin Cordiner of the Goddard Center for Astrobiology at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.
Figuring out exactly which molecules are leaving these clues, known as "diffuse interstellar bands" (DIBs), is a puzzle that initially seemed straightforward but has gone unsolved for nearly a hundred years. The answer is expected to help explain how stars, planets and life form, so settling the matter is as important to astronomers who specialize in chemistry and biology as determining the nature of dark matter is to the specialists in physics.
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But to study DIBs, researchers need to do much more than see that the galaxy is there. They have to pick out individual stars within the galaxy, and only a few telescopes worldwide are powerful enough to gather sufficient light for that. (The team used the Gemini Observatory's telescope in Hawaii.) This is why most DIBs found so far have been in the Milky Way.
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