An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

The organic compound with the formula HOCH2-CHO. It is the simplest → sugar and the first intermediate product in the formose reaction that begins with formaldehyde (H2CO) and leads to the (catalyzed) formation of sugars and ultimately ribose, the backbone of RNA, under early Earth conditions. The presence of glycolaldehyde is therefore an important indication that the processes leading to biologically relevant molecules are taking place. However, the mechanism responsible for its formation in space is still unclear. Glycolaldehyde has been detected toward the → Galactic Center cloud Sgr B2,
in the high-mass → hot molecular core G31.41+0.31, and more recently in the gas surrounding a young binary star with similar mass to the Sun (IRAS 16293-2422). See Jorgensen et al. 2012, astro-ph/1208.5498, and references therein.

See also: From glycol, from glyc(erin) + (alcoh)ol + → aldehyde.