Mass spectrometry (MS) is widely accepted as one of the most effective analytical methods for identifying unknown compounds. Widespread use of MS ranges from multiple research frontiers (e.g. from toxicology 2 to astrobiology ) to education . This ubiquity can be attributed to the high sensitivity and specificity of electron-ionization (EI) mass spectrometry, especially when paired with gas chromatography (GC) . Unknown compounds can be identified with MS by measuring the mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) of ions in a sample. This data is typically represented by an intensity plot of m/z values in the form of a spectrum. For unknown compound identification, the observed spectra are compared with a library of known spectra 5-7 so as to identify the compound(s) in a sample. Amino acids are a notable example of small biomolecules often identified through MS. Genetically encoded amino acids comprise a central α-carbon with variable side-chains (R-groups) in between amino (-NH 2 ) and carboxyl (-COOH) termini. Amino acids are also the primary constituents of the chemical network biologists know as metabolism, in the form of proteins. Life on Earth, for the last 3.5 billion years, has functioned as a network of genetically encoded proteins: each protein comprises a polymerized sequence of amino acids. Despite the availability to life's origins and early evolution of many alternative amino acids, extant life assembles genetically encoded proteins with a standard alphabet of 20 L-α-amino acids. Given that amino acids are foundational to the "N=1" example of life as we know it, they are a clear target when looking for life elsewhere in the cosmos .