Panspermia: Did Life Start on Our Planet?
An otherworldly hypothesis on the origin of life.
How did life begin? That is one of the biggest scientific questions today. Although we don’t have all the details figured out, most scientists believe life began through abiogenesis. Abiogenesis is the process in which nonliving matter gives rise to life. Today, scientists believe abiogenesis occurred quickly on Earth billions of years ago when the environmental conditions permitted it. However, some gaps in that hypothesis have some scientists speculating that life on Earth today didn’t arise on Earth at all. Please keep in mind that all the topics covered in this article were based on scientific discoveries or proposed by practicing scientists.
Panspermia
This hypothesis is known as Panspermia. It posits that life exists throughout our Universe, and it can be spread from planet to planet via space dust, meteorites, asteroids, and other space objects. Although the idea seems unbelievable, it hasn’t been ruled out by scientists just yet. Scientists have discovered that extremophiles — microorganisms that endure extreme conditions — can survive in outer space…
