[Source](https://www-zdnet-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.zdnet.com/google-amp/article/scientists-are-using-quantum-computing-to-help-them-discover-signs-of-life-on-other-planets/) ### How quantum computers could assist with the search for life molecules on exo-planets - detect molecules in outer space that could be precursors to life - useful boost to the work of astrophysicists - finding evidence of molecules that have the potential to create and sustain life ### How it works - Astrophysicists pay attention to light analyzed using telescopes - Why analyze light: - Light for eg. infrared radiation generated by nearby stars interacts with molecules in outer space - When it does, particles vibrate, rotate and absorb some of the light - Leaving a specific signature on the spectral data - Scientists then detect those signatures and trace back to which molecules they correspond. MIT researchers [have previously established that over 14,000 molecules](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27096351/) could indicate signs of life in exoplanets' atmospheres. Challenge is that astrophysicists have to draw a database of all the different ways that those molecules might interact with light -- of all the signatures that they should be looking for when pointing their telescopes to other planets. Goal is to: **generate a database of detectable biological signatures.** ### Challenge They used classical methods to try and predict those signatures The calculation involves *describing exactly how electrons interact with each other within a molecule of interest* -- think hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and so on. On classical computers, we can describe the interactions, but the problem is this is a factorial algorithm, meaning that the more electrons you have, the faster your problem is going to grow "We can do it with two hydrogen atoms, for example, but by the time you have something much bigger, like CO2, you're starting to lose your nerve a little bit because you're using a supercomputer, and even they don't have enough memory or computing power to do that exactly." **Simulating these interactions with classical means, therefore, ultimately comes at the cost of accuracy. **