Astronomers have detected rare methanol isotopes — variants of the alcohol molecule with different neutron counts — in a planet-forming disk around HD 100453, a star 350 light-years away. This discovery, made using the ALMA telescope in Chile, provides key insights into the organic chemistry that may seed life on planets.

Unlike in cooler disks where methanol remains frozen, HD 100453’s warmer environment allowed the molecules to exist as detectable gas. “Finding these isotopes helps us understand the ingredients that could lead to life,” said lead researcher Alice Booth of Harvard & Smithsonian.

The methanol ratio matches that found in Solar System comets, suggesting a shared chemical history; this supports the idea that comets delivered life’s building blocks to Earth. The discovery also hints at the presence of more complex organics like amino acids, yet to be identified.

Located in a dust ring 1.5 billion miles from the star, the methanol’s abundance confirms planet-forming disks are rich reservoirs of prebiotic material—offering a glimpse into how life may arise elsewhere in the cosmos.

For more details, read the full article by Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and download the original paper.