People Used to Drink Wine Made From Ground-Up Mummies. Now, Scientists Are Studying It

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Briefings

Scientists challenge the theory that comets delivered essential life ingredients to Earth billions of years ago, finding that impacts would destroy fragile molecules. Simulations of over 100,000 impacts show key prebiotic compounds are likely destroyed, suggesting life arose from Earth's interior rather than extraterrestrial delivery. Separately, researchers propose sea ice on exoplanets like Hycean worlds could concentrate nutrients for alien life. Ancient Egyptian mummy wine was also studied, revealing historical consumption of ground-up mummies mixed with wine.

Key points

A new study by Richard Anslow's team at the University of Cambridge found that ancient cometary impacts would likely destroy fragile prebiotic molecules like hydrogen cyanide, challenging the theory that comets delivered life ingredients to Earth billions of years ago.

Researchers led by Edouard Barrier suggest sea ice on exoplanets like Hycean worlds could concentrate nutrients for prebiotic chemistry, offering a potential pathway for alien life emergence.

Context

This briefing covers recent studies challenging the theory that comets delivered essential life ingredients to Earth billions of years ago, and researchers proposing sea ice on exoplanets could concentrate nutrients for alien life. The evidence includes simulations of over 100,000 impacts and analysis of ancient Egyptian mummy wine products.

Limitations

Evidence is limited to specific studies from 2026; exact molecular composition of ancient mummy wine remains unclear; some conclusions are based on simulations rather than direct physical samples.

Generated by Bittrees-hosted qwen35-2b sha256:aaf42c8b7c3c on 31/10/2026, 11:55:10 UTC. Based on publisher-provided feed evidence; may not cover the full original article. Check the source for details.

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