4 ms·

I would be very surprised to see life anything like life on earth 10,000 years ago in our solar system. No planet in our solar system can support that level of

by Balero 8y ago

I would be very surprised to see life anything like life on earth 10,000 years ago in our solar system. No planet in our solar system can support that level of bio diversity. They are either too hot, small, cold. Additionally none of them have the right mix of atmospheric gases. Plants massively changed the makeup of Earth's atmosphere, some hundreds of millions of years ago, before the first animals on land. I think there is a chance of very simple life on some moons of the gas giants, if they turn out to have liquid water. Most likely this would be single cell organisms (which can grow quite large, a few inches even) or basic multicellular life. I would be shocked if we found life like trilobites, or even simple plants. It would be the biggest discovery of our lifetime.

jacobush 8y ago
The watery moons are really interesting. Consider this - if we dumped a few tons of (earth originated) diverse bio-matter inside and on these moons, I would be shocked if not some of the earthen critters couldn't if not thrive, at least gain a foothold in these moons. I mean, considering we find microbes in the weirdest places here on Earth. So - given that they could live in these moons: if there is life there already, is it related to Earth life? If not, why not? If there is no life there, but we could seed these moons, how come they are not seeded already? (From meteorite ejecta etc.)
- Balero 8y ago
  Oh almost certainly! Earth grown animals have been found alive on the outside of space stations [0]. Dumping a bunch of earth stuff in these places would likely lead to a new ecosystem. So long as there was an energy source, like thermal vents. This is actually a major problem for looking for life elsewhere in the solar system. How do we know it isn't just an Earth grown hitchhiker? Instruments sent to other planets have to be thoroughly cleaned. In theory they could have been seeded as you describe. The problem is, to quote Douglas Arthur, that "space is really, really big"[1]. It's also not great for life, even the hardiest Earth animals can only survive for decades, and it could easily be centuries or millenia until they were deposited anywhere. Additionally the gas giants, due to their mass, act as a big attractor to stray mass. And any biological life adrift is likely to be sucked into one of these, rather than land on an orbiting moon. [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tardigrade https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tardigrade [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_the_Galaxy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_th... fiction, doesn't back up any point. But hilarious and correct about the size of space.
- logfromblammo 8y ago
  Collect all of Earth's extremophiles--those tolerant to heat, cold, radiation, drought, high pH, low pH, organic pollutants, etc.--and pack them all into an artificial spore casing. Pack those into a spacecraft. Aim the spacecraft at a detected planet or moon, and set it to start ejecting spores whenever it nears a massive object. Make the spores break open and release their biological payload when an accelerometer detects an impact spike, starting a timer, which is reset by changes in acceleration. Most spores will break open in an environment too hostile for the extremophiles, but some will land in conditions that at least partially overlap those found on Earth, and those could reproduce. A cold desert planet could become a lichen-encrusted planet. A wet volcanic planet could become a vent-tubeworm planet. If we ever have the wherewithal to reach those planets eons later, the extremophiles that evolve there could be sequenced and broadcast around explored space for use in other spore-ships. Panspermia from meteorite ejecta would be a slow and painfully random process. An engineered--and, more importantly, aimed--spore craft would increase the odds tremendously.
- sgt101 8y ago
  Maybe, what sort of chemistry happens in there water columns?
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]

by Balero 8y ago

jacobush 8y ago

The watery moons are really interesting. Consider this - if we dumped a few tons of (earth originated) diverse bio-matter inside and on these moons, I would be shocked if not some of the earthen critters couldn't if not thrive, at least gain a foothold in these moons. I mean, considering we find microbes in the weirdest places here on Earth. So - given that they could live in these moons: if there is life there already, is it related to Earth life? If not, why not? If there is no life there, but we could seed these moons, how come they are not seeded already? (From meteorite ejecta etc.)

Balero 8y ago
Oh almost certainly! Earth grown animals have been found alive on the outside of space stations [0]. Dumping a bunch of earth stuff in these places would likely lead to a new ecosystem. So long as there was an energy source, like thermal vents. This is actually a major problem for looking for life elsewhere in the solar system. How do we know it isn't just an Earth grown hitchhiker? Instruments sent to other planets have to be thoroughly cleaned. In theory they could have been seeded as you describe. The problem is, to quote Douglas Arthur, that "space is really, really big"[1]. It's also not great for life, even the hardiest Earth animals can only survive for decades, and it could easily be centuries or millenia until they were deposited anywhere. Additionally the gas giants, due to their mass, act as a big attractor to stray mass. And any biological life adrift is likely to be sucked into one of these, rather than land on an orbiting moon. [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tardigrade https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tardigrade [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_the_Galaxy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_th... fiction, doesn't back up any point. But hilarious and correct about the size of space.
logfromblammo 8y ago
Collect all of Earth's extremophiles--those tolerant to heat, cold, radiation, drought, high pH, low pH, organic pollutants, etc.--and pack them all into an artificial spore casing. Pack those into a spacecraft. Aim the spacecraft at a detected planet or moon, and set it to start ejecting spores whenever it nears a massive object. Make the spores break open and release their biological payload when an accelerometer detects an impact spike, starting a timer, which is reset by changes in acceleration. Most spores will break open in an environment too hostile for the extremophiles, but some will land in conditions that at least partially overlap those found on Earth, and those could reproduce. A cold desert planet could become a lichen-encrusted planet. A wet volcanic planet could become a vent-tubeworm planet. If we ever have the wherewithal to reach those planets eons later, the extremophiles that evolve there could be sequenced and broadcast around explored space for use in other spore-ships. Panspermia from meteorite ejecta would be a slow and painfully random process. An engineered--and, more importantly, aimed--spore craft would increase the odds tremendously.
sgt101 8y ago
Maybe, what sort of chemistry happens in there water columns?
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]