Panspermia: life from one world to the next

The question of how life began has given rise to numerous hypotheses. Panspermia has been widespread since ancient Greece. It was first proposed by the Greek philosopher Anaxagoras (500-428 BC), who coined the term and was the first to clearly state that life could move between planets as “seeds.” Did.

This concept resonated with the ideas of other philosophers of the time, such as Anaximander and Thales, but it remained a topic of speculation for centuries until it was brought into focus by scientific advances in various fields. It remained in the area.

Some of the more important studies have demonstrated that microbes can survive the extreme conditions associated with being ejected from planets, surviving the rigors of interplanetary travel, and enduring the shock of reaching new worlds. did.

Nineteenth-century researchers, including Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius, also contributed to this debate by suggesting mechanisms for microbial passage through space, such as radiation pressure from the sun.

In the modern version, the idea of ​​panspermia goes through three stages: escape from the planet, passage through interplanetary space, and landing on another planet.

However, panspermia does not actually explain how life originated, as it simply attributes the origin of life on one planet to another. It’s actually a fringe theory in the scientific community, as scientists agree it’s difficult, if not impossible, to prove.

It has also been the subject of many controversies, including suggestions that the interstellar object ‘Oumuamua is an alien species suffering from panspermia.