Miller-Urey+Experiment

**By: Alexandra Miller**
 * The Miller-Urey Experiment**

In the 1950’s scientist were trying to find out where life came from. In 1953, Stanley L. Miller and Harold C. Urey were working at the University of Chicago, when they began an experiment that found out where life came from.

Miller took molecules that he believed were major elements of early Earth’s atmosphere and put them into a closed system. The gases they used were methane (CH4), ammonia (NH3), hydrogen (H2), and water (H2O). Next, he ran a continuous electric current through the system, to create replica lightning storms believed to be common on the early earth. At the end of one week Miller saw that about 10-15% of the carbon turned into organic compounds. 2% of the carbon had formed some of the amino acids which are used to make proteins. Millers experiment showed that organic compounds such as amino acids, which are essential to cellular life, could be made easily under the conditions of early earth.

Many of the compounds made in the Miller/Urey experiment are known to exist in outer space. On September 28, 1969, a meteorite fell over Murchison, Australia. Only 100 kilograms were recovered, analysis of the meteorite has shown that it is rich with amino acids. Over 90 amino acids have been identified by researchers to date. Nineteen of these amino acids are found on Earth.



Carefully experimenting and collecting data using a scientific method**.**
 * Science is:**

References: Miller–Urey experiment. (2013, May 15). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:11, May 17, 2013, from []