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Thursday 29 Oct 2015 - 11:19 Makkah mean time-16-1-1437
 Michigan, (IINA) - Scientists announced on Wednesday that they discovered large quantities of oxygen on a comet that streaked past the Sun in August, AFP reported.
Andre Bieler, a scientist from the University of Michigan, said that the findings came as a "big surprise", noting that it challenges mainstream theories on the formation of our Solar System. He added that measurements suggested oxygen molecules in the comet's gassy halo must have existed "before or at" its formation, which may impose implications regarding humankind's understanding of the chemistry involved in the formation of the Solar System some 4.6 billion years ago. "We believe this oxygen is primordial, which means it is older than our Solar System," said Bieler.
Scientists had previously ruled out the presence of oxygen (O2) on comets such as 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, the subject of intensive prodding by a European robot probe.
As O2 mixes so easily with other elements, "we never thought that oxygen could 'survive' for billions of years", said Kathrin Altwegg of the University of Bern, who co-authored a study.
"This evidence of oxygen as an ancient substance will likely discredit some theoretical models of the formation of our Solar System", she said.
It is noteworthy that the comet is being tracked on its space journey around the Sun by the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft. The mission seeks to unlock the mystery of the origins of life on Earth.
AG/IINA
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