Extractable organic matter in chondrites

Soluble organic compounds in chondrites are highly varied in structure, composition, and size (molecular weight). Table 10.1 lists the groups of extractable organics in Murchison ( 2) and Tagish Lake (another CM-like chondrite). These two falls are the most 

Molecular representations and functional groups in organic compounds, (a) Different ways to represent the structures of aliphatic and aromatic compounds, (b) Some important functional groups attached to organic skeletons, and the corresponding names of organic compounds. 

The literature on aromatic hydrocarbons reveals considerable differences in the relative abundances of different compounds, almost certainly a result of different analytical approaches. The most abundant aromatic compounds in Murchison are the PAHs 

Structures of some organic compounds found in carbonaceous chondrites. 

We did not mention polar hydrocarbons in the crash course on organic nomenclature (Box 10.1). This term refers to compounds containing one or more nitrogen, oxygen, or sulfur atoms replacing carbon atoms in ring structures or sometimes attached to them. These 

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At the end of this subsection we are forced to conclude that the origin of the extractable organic matter in chondrites remains fundamentally unknown, though there are at least two plausible scenarios a Fischer-Tropseh-type synthesis or a Urey-Miller-type synthesis. 

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