Last January, the comet C/2014 Q2 Lovejoy passed in proximity of the Sun. Thanks to the radiotelescope of IRAM (Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique), a team of French researchers identified ethanol and glycolaldehyde on the comet surface. This is of particular interest because the glycolaldehyde is one of the building blocks of RNA, the nucleic acid considered at the origin of life on the Earth. Moreover, this is the first time that the glycolaldehyde can be identified on a comet. During its journey, the comet Lovejoy lost roughly 20 tons of mass.
Here you will find 4 questions about this text (By Matteo Venturelli and Federico Ercoli)
eTwinning project "Funology in Science"