Question

How did the Miller-Urey experiment model conditions of early earth?

Answer 1

Miller-Urey experiment was performed by the scientist named Stanely Miller in around 1952. The main aim of this experiment was to get that early earth’s atmosphere and tested the chemical origin of life under those particular conditions. They tried to find out how life on earth originated.

Complete answer:
Stanely miller and Harold C. Urey performed this experiment to specifically find out whether the atmosphere of earth at that time before (1952) was able to make the amino acids from the inorganic compounds. With this idea they tried an excellent experiment which we study even today due to its dynamic results. For this experiment they took one flask which was filled with water and the other flask contained a pair of electrodes. The water vapour was heated and then the vapour released was added to the chemical mixture, these released gases circulated around the apparatus imitating the earth’s atmosphere. The flask filled with water represented the water on earth’s surface and water vapour were just like the water evaporating from the lakes, seas etc. Lastly the electrodes were used to spark the fire to imitate lightning and storm through water vapour.
Now these vapours were allowed to be cooled and the water got condensed. This condensed water again back into the flask making a cycle.
At the end of the one week what they noticed was 10-15% of the carbon was in the form of organic compounds. 2% of the carbon had formed over 20 amino acids which included 13 of the 22 which are used to make proteins in the living cells.

Note: Though this experiment concluded that the atmosphere of early earth was different from that used by Miller and Urey, we can definitely say that their experiment showed the way that yes upto some extent atmosphere has those capacities which helped in origin of life on earth.