[astro-ph.EP] An early period of cometary bombardment has long been speculated to provide an important source of prebiotic feedstock molecules, required for the origins of life on Earth.
panspermia
Posted inPlanetary Protection & Biosafety
Blown Sand On Mars Can Spread Microbial Spores From Earth
[Astrobiology (Journal), via PubMed] We present experiments demonstrating that B. subtilis HA101 endospores (henceforth spores) may remain intact after impact by, and subsequent transport on the surfaces of, sand grains.
Posted inPanspermia
Comets Probably Didn’t Seed Life On Earth After All, New Study Suggests
[University of Cambridge]. Comets didn’t seed life on Earth after all, a new study suggests, potentially overturning a century-old idea.
Posted inAstrochemistry
Intimate Link Between Prebiotic Chemistry And Meteorites: Mechanisms Of Organic Molecule Formation
[Astrobiology (Journal) via PubMed] Whether meteorites brought ingredients necessary for the origin of life exogenously or they were produced endogenously on early Earth, having a prebiotic chemical inventory of organic […]
Posted inPlanetary Protection & Biosafety
A Framework for Evaluating Forward Contamination Risk for Bio-ISRU Microorganisms
[astro-ph.IM]. NASA planetary protection policy seeks to avoid inadvertent forward contamination of celestial bodies and backward contamination of Earth during space exploration.
Posted inPanspermia
Natural Lithopanspermia to Earth: Transport, Shielding, and Survival Limits for Solar-System and Extrasolar Donor Classes
[physics.gen-ph] Natural panspermia is a transport-and-establishment hypothesis, not a theory of abiogenesis. The Earth-specific question is whether any nonterrestrial donor remains competitive with terrestrial origin once launch, planetary-system escape, transit, […]
Posted inVenus
A Panspermia Origin For Venus Cloud Life
[USRA] Panspermia is the idea that life can originate on one planetary body and then be transferred to other bodies. Impacts are often the suggested method for transfer, as they […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life
The Biological Cosmological Constant ΛB: Exploratory Propensity, Dynamical Habitability And The Geometric Origin Of Life
[BioSystems via PubMed] The emergence of life represents a fundamental geometric phase transition in the state space of complex systems, rather than a mere sequence of chemical syntheses. Building upon […]
Posted inEuropa, Meteorites & Asteroids, Origin & Evolution of Life, Panspermia, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Earth As A Potential Source Of Llife For Europa’s Subsurface Ocean
The paper discusses the possibility of dust particles containing living bacteria ejected from Earth reaching Europa and landing on its surface.
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Impact events, Origin & Evolution of Life, Panspermia, Press Release
Impact History Of Early Earth Created Conditions Conducive To Life
Southwest Research Institute scientists modeled the early impact history of Earth, seeking insight into potential origins of life. These models show that asteroid impacts on the early Earth plowed up […]