Scientists found raspberry-flavored sugar floating in a Milky Way cloud, and up to 50 million tons may have reached early Earth

Scientists have uncovered something unexpected deep inside the Milky Way. A rare sugar that naturally occurs in raspberries has been detected drifting through a giant molecular cloud near the center of our galaxy. This is the first confirmed discovery of a true sugar molecule in interstellar space. The finding could also offer new clues about how some of the building blocks of life reached Earth billions of years ago.

The discovery was made by a team led by astronomer Izaskun Jiménez-Serra at Spain’s Center for Astrobiology. The researchers identified the four-carbon sugar called erythrulose inside a cloud known as G+0.693-0.027. Their study was published in the journal Nature Astronomy. Instead of finding the simpler three-carbon sugar they expected, the team spotted a much rarer compound.

Erythrulose is naturally found in raspberries. It is also the active ingredient that gives self-tanning lotions their bronze color. Using Spain’s 131-foot Yebes and 98-foot IRAM radio telescopes, the researchers searched for the sugar’s unique radio signature. “To my surprise, I saw the signals,” Jiménez-Serra told The Guardian.

I can’t believe scientists just found raspberry sugar floating through space

The discovery adds another surprising chapter to this region of the Milky Way. According to ScienceAlert, scientists had already detected ethyl formate in nearly the same location. That compound contributes to raspberry flavor and inspired the nickname “raspberry donut” for the galactic center. Even so, erythrulose is incredibly scarce. Researchers estimate there is only about one sugar molecule for every one and a half billion hydrogen molecules inside the cloud.

The team believes these molecules may have played a role far beyond deep space. In a statement, the researchers estimated that between half a million and fifty million metric tons of erythrulose could have reached Earth’s surface about four billion years ago. They suggest this supply may have contributed to the earliest metabolic and replication processes that eventually led to life.

The search for life’s origins continues to produce surprising discoveries, including signs of life found inside an ancient mummy that may have persisted for more than five thousand years. 

Yoshihiro Furukawa, a professor at Tohoku University in Japan who previously discovered sugars on the Bennu asteroid, said the discovery had been anticipated for years. He said, “We have been waiting for an actual detection like this.” Furukawa explained that sugars formed in interstellar space can travel to Earth and other planets through cometary dust. He also cautioned that scientists still do not know exactly how these molecules may have helped life emerge.

Findings like this show that some of the biggest scientific questions are being explored in unexpected ways. Recently, researchers also created T. rex leather using ancient dinosaur DNA, pushing the boundaries of biotechnology and paleontology.

The cloud also contains cyanide-bearing compounds. Despite its sweet nickname, researchers say it is a place best studied from a safe distance and never sampled.