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Amino Acids in the Antarctic Martian Meteorite MIL03346The report by McKay et al. that the Martian meteorite ALH84001 contains evidence for life on Mars remains controversial. Of central importance is whether ALH84001 and other Antarctic Martian meteorites contain endogenous organic compounds. In any investigation of organic compounds possibly derived from Mars it is important to focus on compounds that play an essential role in biochemistry as we know it and that have properties such as chirality which can be used to distinguish between biotic versus abiotic origins. Amino acids are one of the few compounds that fulfill these requirements. Previous analyses of the Antarctic Martian meteorites ALH84001 and EETA79001 have shown that these meteorites contain low levels of terrestrial amino acid contamination derived from Antarctic ice meltwater. Here we report preliminary amino acid investigations of a third Antarctic Martian meteorite MIL03346 which was discovered in Antarctica during the 2003-04 ANSMET season. Additional information is included in the original extended abstract
Document ID
20050169532
Acquisition Source
Headquarters
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Glavin, D. P.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Aubrey, A.
(Scripps Institution of Oceanography La Jolla, CA, United States)
Dworkin, J. P.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Botta, O.
(International Space Science Inst. Bern, Switzerland)
Bada, J. L.
(Scripps Institution of Oceanography La Jolla, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
September 7, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 2005
Publication Information
Publication: Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, Part 7
Subject Category
Exobiology
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
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