The molecular building blocks of life had already formed by the time the universe was only a quarter of its present age, new observations by NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope reveal. The research bolsters the case for extraterrestrial life and may shed light on the nature of galaxies in the early universe.

The signature of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) molecules were found in two galaxies. The molecules contain about 100 carbon and hydrogen atoms each and are the building blocks of even more complex organic molecules.