"At very low angles, we think that some water-ice from the comet would remain intact as a liquid puddle concentrated with organic molecules, ideal for the development of life, " Blank said.

BBC: Comets could have seeded life on Earth

The first is that the asteroid is really a ball of ice, like the nucleus of a comet, and that the minerals which the spectroscope detected are only a coating.

ECONOMIST: Asteroids

On the main side, the front side of our ice cube tray, if you will, we exposed that when we flew past the comet, so we caught the comet dust.

NPR: Stardust Set to Deliver Comet Samples