- A natural sugar, erythrulose, found in raspberries and fake tan lotions, was detected in a dust cloud near the Milky Way's center.
- The discovery shows life-important compounds can form in interstellar space, suggesting sugars may be more common than previously thought.
- Erythrulose likely forms from chemical reactions on interstellar dust grains, despite frigid temperatures around -250°C.
- This sugar can contribute to forming ribonucleotides, the building blocks of early genetic material like RNA.
- Millions of tonnes of erythrulose may have rained on Earth during the Late Heavy Bombardment, aiding prebiotic conditions for life's emergence.