Author
Katherine Pering
Bio: Katherine Pering is an academic researcher from Ames Research Center. The author has contributed to research in topics: Abiogenic petroleum origin & Murchison meteorite. The author has an hindex of 6, co-authored 8 publications receiving 967 citations.
Papers
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TL;DR: Organic molecules found in meteorites seem to have been formed before the meteorites reached Earth, according to new research.
Abstract: Extraterrestrial abiotic amino acids and hydrocarbons in type II carbonaceous chondrite at Murchison, Australia
762 citations
TL;DR: Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons in the Murchison meteorite have been identified by the combined techniques of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry and suggest that they are the products of a high-temperature synthesis.
Abstract: Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons in the Murchison meteorite have been identified by the combined techniques of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. The distribution of the aromatic compounds suggests that they are the products of a high-temperature synthesis.
115 citations
55 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a bitumen deposit in north Derbyshire, England is described and studied using the techniques of gas chromatography, infra-red spectrophotometry and elemental analysis.
42 citations
TL;DR: Aliphatic hydrocarbons isolated from Trinidad Lake asphalt by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry appear to be unlike the traditional hydrocarbon types as discussed by the authors, however, they do not have the same properties.
12 citations
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TL;DR: The second edition of The Biomarker Guide as mentioned in this paper provides a comprehensive account of the role that biomarker technology plays both in petroleum exploration and in understanding Earth history and processes.
Abstract: The second edition of The Biomarker Guide is a fully updated and expanded version of this essential reference. Now in two volumes, it provides a comprehensive account of the role that biomarker technology plays both in petroleum exploration and in understanding Earth history and processes. Biomarkers and Isotopes in the Environment and Human History details the origins of biomarkers and introduces basic chemical principles relevant to their study. It discusses analytical techniques, and applications of biomarkers to environmental and archaeological problems. The Biomarker Guide is an invaluable resource for geologists, petroleum geochemists, biogeochemists, environmental scientists and archaeologists.
2,163 citations
TL;DR: High-resolution scanning and transmission electron microscopy study of surface textures and internal structures of selected carbonate globules show that the globules contain fine-grained, secondary phases of single-domain magnetite and iron sulfides.
Abstract: Fresh fracture surfaces of the martian meteorite ALH84001 contain abundant polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These fresh fracture surfaces also display carbonate globules. Contamination studies suggest that the PAHs are indigenous to the meteorite. High-resolution scanning and transmission electron microscopy study of surface textures and internal structures of selected carbonate globules show that the globules contain fine-grained, secondary phases of single-domain magnetite and Fe-sulfides. The carbonate globules are similar in texture and size to some terrestrial bacterially induced carbonate precipitates. Although inorganic formation is possible, formation of the globules by biogenic processes could explain many of the observed features, including the PAHs. The PAHs, the carbonate globules, and their associated secondary mineral phases and textures could thus be fossil remains of a past martian biota.
1,582 citations
TL;DR: A supramolecular SMM dimer in which antiferromagnetic coupling between the two components results in quantum behaviour different from that of the individual SMMs, suggesting a means of tuning the quantum tunnelling of magnetization in SMMs.
Abstract: Various present and future specialized applications of magnets require monodisperse, small magnetic particles, and the discovery of molecules that can function as nanoscale magnets was an important development in this regard. These molecules act as single-domain magnetic particles that, below their blocking temperature, exhibit magnetization hysteresis, a classical property of macroscopic magnets. Such 'single-molecule magnets' (SMMs) straddle the interface between classical and quantum mechanical behaviour because they also display quantum tunnelling of magnetization and quantum phase interference. Quantum tunnelling of magnetization can be advantageous for some potential applications of SMMs, for example, in providing the quantum superposition of states required for quantum computing. However, it is a disadvantage in other applications, such as information storage, where it would lead to information loss. Thus it is important to both understand and control the quantum properties of SMMs. Here we report a supramolecular SMM dimer in which antiferromagnetic coupling between the two components results in quantum behaviour different from that of the individual SMMs. Our experimental observations and theoretical analysis suggest a means of tuning the quantum tunnelling of magnetization in SMMs. This system may also prove useful for studying quantum tunnelling of relevance to mesoscopic antiferromagnets.
858 citations
TL;DR: Gas chromatographic-mass spectral analyses of the four stereoisomers of 2-amino-2,3-dimethylpentanoic acid obtained from the Murchison meteorite show that the L enantiomer occurs in excess, indicative of an asymmetric influence on organic chemical evolution before the origin of life.
Abstract: Gas chromatographic-mass spectral analyses of the four stereoisomers of 2-amino-2,3-dimethylpentanoic acid (dl-alpha-methylisoleucine and dl-alpha-methylalloisoleucine) obtained from the Murchison meteorite show that the L enantiomer occurs in excess (7.0 and 9.1%, respectively) in both of the enantiomeric pairs. Similar results were obtained for two other alpha-methyl amino acids, isovaline and alpha-methylnorvaline, although the alpha hydrogen analogs of these amino acids, alpha-amino-n-butyric acid and norvaline, were found to be racemates. With the exception of alpha-amino-n-butyric acid, these amino acids are either unknown or of limited occurrence in the biosphere. Because carbonaceous chondrites formed 4.5 billion years ago, the results are indicative of an asymmetric influence on organic chemical evolution before the origin of life.
768 citations
TL;DR: The results demonstrate that the spontaneous generation of amino acids in the interstellar medium is possible, supporting the suggestion that prebiotic molecules could have been delivered to the early Earth by cometary dust, meteorites or interplanetary dust particles.
Abstract: Amino acids are the essential molecular components of living organisms on Earth, but the proposed mechanisms for their spontaneous generation have been unable to account for their presence in Earth's early history1. The delivery of extraterrestrial organic compounds has been proposed as an alternative to generation on Earth2,3,4,5, and some amino acids have been found in several meteorites6,7,8,9. Here we report the detection of amino acids in the room-temperature residue of an interstellar ice analogue that was ultraviolet-irradiated in a high vacuum at 12 K. We identified 16 amino acids; the chiral ones showed enantiomeric separation. Some of the identified amino acids are also found in meteorites. Our results demonstrate that the spontaneous generation of amino acids in the interstellar medium is possible, supporting the suggestion that prebiotic molecules could have been delivered to the early Earth by cometary dust, meteorites or interplanetary dust particles.
743 citations