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Organic Molecules Detected in the Early Universe
Spitzer's infrared spectrometer, which spreads infrared light from galaxies into a spectrum detected the molecules. The bands of radiation in the spectrum revealed that PAH molecules were presnt in gas clouds of the distant, early galaxies.Astronomers measure the red shift of molecular spectra to find the distance to galaxies.
This is the first time scientists have been able to measure a distance as great as 10-billion light years away using the spectral fingerprints of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
"These complex compounds tell us that by the time we see these galaxies, several generations of stars have already been formed," said Dr. George Helou of the Spitzer Science Center, a co-author of the study. "Planets and life had very early opportunities to emerge in the universe."
