4 ms·

Arrokoth: New 'Sugar World' Discovered in Kuiper Belt

• PeterCorless 2y ago
  [Edit: The title is slightly misleading. We've known about this object since 2014. What's new is the discovery of sugars found in its methanol ice.] Arrokoth is formerly known as 2014 MU69 and Ultima Thule, and is the furthest Trans Neptunian Object (TNO) explored by humankind. New Horizons made a flyby in 2019. It's a billion miles further away from Earth than Pluto. Methanol ice on Arrokoth shows traces of ribose (C₅H₁₀O₅) — a natural part of DNA — and glucose (C₆H₁₂O₆) sugars. More from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/486958_Arrokoth https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/486958_Arrokoth