Panspermia

I just watched a segment on youtube from Cosmic Quandaries where Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson talks about alien life, and the plausible theory of Panspermia. This is the first I have heard of this theory, but it makes complete sense IMO.

Panspermia isn't the explanation on how life formed, but how it has been distributed throughout the universe. It is hypothesized that Panspermia occured on Earth when meteors struck Mars (when it wasn't a dead planet), dislodging rocks with possible bacteria (extremophiles) stowed away. The meteors that are flung out into space are then thrown in the direction of different bodies including Earth, fertilizing the stowed bacteria onto what it comes in contacts with. Bacteria has been proven to be more flexible in the survival aspect in harsher enviroments than complex life forms.

Dr. Tyson also touches on the fact that the most common elements found in stars, are also the most common elements that make up the human body(Hydrogen, Oxygen, and Carbon). Any-who, I figured some of you might enjoy this perspective as much as I did. Feel free to add if you have anything relevant to this theory. Thanks for reading/watching!



---- Picture found in the Wiki link used above.

jeenyus2008
I just watched a segment on youtube from Cosmic Quandaries where Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson talks about alien life, and the plausible theory of Panspermia. This is the first I have heard of this theory, but it makes complete sense IMO.

Thanks for posting that. Panspermia is a theory that has been around a long, long time. At least the 1800s and possibly as far back as the 5th century B.C.

Until we have evidence of life elsewhere it is untestable.

However, if we find life on Mars, or even better still, Europa or Enceladus resembles life on Earth in terms of DNA then Panspermia will get a huge boost in popularity again.

reply to post by jeenyus2008


Here is a video that I first saw on one of cheesy's threads.
Its a video from nasa of ISON. If panspermia does hold any water behind the theory here is a good visual aid.
The first 3 sec really highlight how the Macro can appear very similar to the micro.



Brings a whole new meaning to mother earth.
Just a little food for thought.

reply to post by JadeStar


Thanks for the reply. Yeah I hadn't heard of this theory until today. If more evidence comes about supporting this theory, then maybe Panspermia starts with star formation. When a star starts nuclear fusion, maybe it kicks up so many different elements blasting the bodies that form and orbit around the sol.

reply to post by CitizenJack


Yeah! I remember reading that thread, and seeing that video. Its amazing because it does resemble a sperm looking to fertilize. Thanks for adding that video. Anything helps with visualization

While it can't be discounted, Panspermia seems unlikely to me and this is why. In order for it to be true, life still had to evolve from non life at some point. It then had to encounter some catastrophic event that flung it out into space. It then had to survive a long space voyage, survive entering Earth's atmosphere, and find an environment conducive to life on Earth.

It still hinges on life coming from non life at some point, so why bother with all the other unlikely requirements for Panspermia when you can just jump to life evolving here?

reply to post by OccamsRazor04

Applying Occam's razor here, are we?

Panspermia is a possible delivery method, that's all. Life might have evolded in-situ on some worlds, and transported to other worlds where it couldn't have (or didn't have a chance to yet) evolve. Mars might be completely lifeless now, but if we transported a bunch of microbes and other primitive organisms there from Earth, some of them might take hold and colonise it. In fact, it's one of the reasons spacecraft and rovers are assembled in a clean room, to prevent any contamination of other planets or moons with our life forms.

It still doesn't answer the question of where and how life all began in the first place.

But it makes some nice food for thought.

reply to post by wildespace


Yes, although the odds of colonizing Mars with any Earth life is basically 0. Not even the most extreme Earth conditions where we have found life come remotely close to the extremes of Mars. Like I said, it's possible, but it's like thinking the baseball in your bag must have bounced in there from someone else playing baseball rather than you forgot to take it out after your last practice.

reply to post by wildespace


Great points! And didn't they find a 4th domain of extremophiles? Doing a little reading into this, Eukaryotes would be the type of bacteria that could form multi-cellular levels or colonies. Achaeans are the type of cell that can mostly withstand extreme environments, and can adapt to feed off a wide variety of food sources.
Three-Domain System

Life might have evolded in-situ on some worlds, and transported to other worlds where it couldn't have (or didn't have a chance to yet) evolve.

^That's a interesting thought. How about if our sun went supernova. Could the blast throw Achaean (or even Eukaryotes) bacteria, from Earth, around the galaxy until lucky enough to plant itself somewhere halfway decent (environmentally)..?

I know that panspermia is just a theory. I am the type to need definitive evidence before I jump with both feet. I just thought sometimes it's healthy to speculate.