Space/Science — HabitableZone

Space/Science » in reply to Earth rocks could have taken life to Titan

re: very dubious
Andrew — (archived)

This is very dubious. The one thing that is guaranteed to kill any bacterium is heat. How can you eject a rock from Earth by collision with an incoming projectile, and then drop it through the atmosphere of Titan without it getting very hot? Similarly for bugs coming to Earth unless they are free floating- in which case without the protection of a rock casing they will be wrecked by solar radiation (probably even with a protective coat too) Even if Earth bacteria reached Titan it is too cold for them to do anything. Bacteria can be stored in liquid nitrogen, no one actually knows for how long, but they do not metabolize at very low temperatures and they certainly don’t divide and grow. Some bacteria are very resistant to radiation but I think this is probably an evolved trait not a primitive hold-over; it's certainly not a strong argument for panspermia which in my opinion is just one step more credible than witch craft.

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