Crash Dummies From Outer Space

摘要

Panspermia - the notion that life can be transferred between different bodies in the solar system, and maybe even between different planetary systems - has intrigued us for millennia. The Greek philosopher Anaxagoras discussed it some 2,500 years ago, and the idea again gained credence in the late 19th century. But the question has never been satisfactorily answered: Could a viable life-form, such as a microbial organism, actually withstand a journey - from Mars to Earth, for instance - that would inevitably end in a violent impact? Based on recent laboratory experiments, University of Kent physicist Dina Pasini offers a qualified yes.