Panspermia Theory Essay

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How life originated on earth is a question that people have wondered for ages. One possibility that answer this brilliant question is the panspermia theory, which suggests that life on earth originated thanks to the contribution of cosmic beings that come from any point in the universe. This hypothesis does not speak of organisms ranging in meteorites moving through the universe to the Earth to conquer it, but it speaks of complex chemical substances which had been formed earlier from the origins of the universe, which reached the earth at any given time.

This hypothesis emerged when scientists found organic molecules in meteorites from the universe. Some investigators wondered if the abiotic production of organic materials in the soil was absolutely basic to the origin of life. Maybe some organic materials from elsewhere in the universe had arrived in the early earth.
Statistics have showed 7.5% of rocks from Mars reached Earth. These rocks would travel between less than 100 years to 16,000 years and more to get to Earth. Some proponents include Gyon de Montlivant, who proposed that life came from moon, H.E. Richter, who suggested life came from meteorites or comets, but Svante Arrhenius proposed this theory.

While this idea may seem straight out of a science fiction movie, some evidence suggests that an extraterrestrial origin of life may not be such impossible idea.

One argument that supports the panspermia theory is the emergence of life soon after the heavy bombardment period of earth, between 4 and 3.8 billion years ago. During this period, researchers believe the Earth endured an extended and very powerful series of meteor showers. However, the earliest evidence for life on Earth suggests it was present some 3.83 billi...

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...at different points in the past, this observation presents an interesting argument for panspermia. While this study does not provide conclusive evidence for presence of life in outer space, it does raise the possibility that our galaxy may be fool with bacterial spores.
An important thing to note about the panspermia hypothesis is that it gives no explanation for how life that arrived on Earth came to be. Even if we are able to show that life on Earth was a result of panspermia, the question of where and how life originated will be a lot harder to answer. So far our knowledge of the solar system suggests that life is unique to Earth, but, as science and technology advance, we will have to modify ideas that we currently see as facts. It remains to be seen if the questions about the origin of life on Earth and the origin of life in the universe have the same answer.

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