Strange tetra-alcohol synthesised in simulated interstellar ice

For the first time, researchers have synthesised and characterised the ‘only possible structure’ with four hydroxyl groups linked to a carbon atom – methanetetrol.

Also known as orthocarbonic acid, this molecule was first hypothesised in 1922 by physical chemist Ernst Wilke. Despite the stability and prevalence of tetravalent structures like orthocarbonic esters, the detection of the more modest metanethetrol – unstable and elusive – remained a mystery. ‘We used a different synthetic strategy,’ says lead author Ralf Kaiser from the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, US.