Hum Posted October 6, 2010 Share Posted October 6, 2010 British researchers from Cranfield University, in cooperation with the European Space Agency, plan to launch a balloon this week from the Esrange Space Center in Kiruna, the northernmost city in Sweden, with on-board instruments that will search for non-Earth bacteria and micro-organisms. Team leader and electronic engineer Clara Juanes-Vallejo spoke to AOL News from above the Arctic Circle, where she and her team were waiting for the launch of the Cranfield Astrobiological Stratospheric Sampling Experiment, or CASS-E. "We have an interest in looking for life in extreme environments, like the planet Mars, because if we can find life in a harsh environment, like Earth's stratosphere, then we might be able to find life on Mars," Juanes-Vallejo said. "In the stratosphere, it's minus-90 degrees Celsius, and a near-vacuum, in addition to extreme radiation, where there's no atmosphere to protect you. If we find very strange life up there, we can say it's not ours." And such a discovery would support the theory that life on Earth came from somewhere else in the cosmos. Many scientists believe life may have arrived on Earth in any number of ways: piggy-backing a ride on comets, asteroids or, as Juanes-Vallejo points out, windfalling. more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cacoe Posted October 6, 2010 Share Posted October 6, 2010 Makes sense. Hasn't anyone tried this before? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mystic Mungis Posted October 6, 2010 Share Posted October 6, 2010 Makes sense. Hasn't anyone tried this before? Yeah you would think they would have tried it before, seems kind of obvious. Maybe it has been done in the past but instruments weren't advanced enough? Anyway hope they find something, would be awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hum Posted October 6, 2010 Author Share Posted October 6, 2010 They will find Martian mumps -- kills off our immune systems :shiftyninja: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mystic Mungis Posted October 6, 2010 Share Posted October 6, 2010 My biggest concern is alien STD's :alien: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Growled Member Posted October 7, 2010 Member Share Posted October 7, 2010 A waste of time and money, I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benplace Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 Think of how many frozen comets/astroids had to hit the Earth in its infancy to account for all of the water we currently have. Was life delivered on one of them and extremely rare or millions of them and quite common in the universe? This question needs answered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panacik Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 My biggest concern is alien STD's :alien: But will the Alien sex be worth it!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onebadolepuddycat Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 Daleks are there....I have proof positive! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincent Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 A waste of time and money, I think. I beg to differ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Growled Member Posted October 11, 2010 Member Share Posted October 11, 2010 I beg to differ Any alien life found in our outer atmosphere could only get here through the voids and absolute zero temperatures of space. It would have to be able to survive for centuries (or more) on a cold, hard rock. I just can't see that happening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincent Posted October 11, 2010 Share Posted October 11, 2010 Any alien life found in our outer atmosphere could only get here through the voids and absolute zero temperatures of space. It would have to be able to survive for centuries (or more) on a cold, hard rock. I just can't see that happening. True. Or perhaps it could enter a hibernation type state in between star systems and revive once it enters the "warm" zone when near our star.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hum Posted October 12, 2010 Author Share Posted October 12, 2010 Maybe comets could be transporting millions of bacteria/ genetic material across Space -- like a giant sperm cell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel Blue01 Posted October 18, 2010 Share Posted October 18, 2010 Has anyone else thought "Andromeda Strain"? Watch out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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