1. FeO can be prepared by the thermal decomposition of iron (II) oxalate.

Cartoon of the planet Mars that is showered with organics. According to calculations, 33% of the organic material on Mars comes from asteroids and comets. Only 67% comes from interplanetary dust. Credit: Anastasia Kruchevska

Asteroids and comets appear to be a much more important supplier of organic molecules on Mars than expected. Until now, astronomers assumed that the organics on Mars mainly came from dust particles from space. Now, computer simulations by an international team of researchers led by Dutch astronomers indicate that one third of the material comes from asteroids and comets.

In 2015, the Mars rover Curiosity discovered remnants of organic molecules on Mars. Scientists wondered how these organic molecules had ended up on Mars...

STEVE and the Milky Way at Childs Lake, Manitoba, Canada. The picture is a composite of 11 images stitched together. Credit: Krista Trinder

Notanee Bourassa knew that what he was seeing in the night sky was not normal. Bourassa, an IT technician in Regina, Canada, trekked outside of his home on July 25, 2016, around midnight with his 2 younger children to show them a beautiful aurora borealis. When a thin purple ribbon of light appeared and starting glowing, Bourassa immediately snapped pictures until the light particles disappeared 20 minutes later. Having watched the northern lights for almost 30 years since he was a teenager, he knew this wasn’t an aurora. It was something else.

From 2015 to 2016, citizen scientists—people like Bourassa who are excited about a science field but don’t ne...

1. Acetylene, 1-butyl alcohol, carbon monoxide, nickel carbonyl, and hydrochlo...