In a finding that substantiates the theory that asteroids were apparently the source of water and life on Earth, researchers have, for the first time, directly detected a sludgy mix of water-ice and organic materials on the surface of 24 Themis – a big asteroid located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

The discovery, of the water ice and organic molecules composition on the asteroid, has been reported by two different research teams; and their findings have been published in the April 28 edition of the journal Nature.

One of the research teams - comprising astronomer Andrew Rivkin of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, and his colleague Joshua Emery, of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville – said that, for a comprehensive observation of the 24 Themis’ surface, the NASA Infrared Telescope at Mauna Kea, Hawaii, was turned onto it.

Meanwhile, the other research team, led by Humberto Campins of the University of Central Florida, Orlando, observed the 24 Themis for seven hours one night, catching every movement of its near-complete rotation on its axis.

Commenting on the findings, Campins said: “Between us, we have seen the asteroid from almost every angle and we see global coverage. What we’ve found suggests that an asteroid like this one may have hit Earth and brought our planet its water. I believe our findings are linked to the origin of life on Earth.”