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Do we have a planetary bias when it comes to understanding where life can perpetuate? It's only natural that we do. After all, we're on one.
"Standard definitions of habitability assume that life requires the presence of planetary gravity wells to stabilize liquid water and regulate surface temperature," they write."Here the consequences of relaxing this assumption are evaluated." Earth does more than just provide liquid water and protection from radiation. It's an entire system with layers of interacting complexity.
Low-mass objects in the outer Solar System have ample surface area, but the Sun's energy is weak. They're unlikely to be able to hold onto their atmospheres, so the correct pressure and temperature for liquid water are out of reach. They're also unprotected from UV radiation and cosmic rays. Cyanobacteria can grow with air headspace pressures of 10 kPa, so long as the light, temperature and pH are in the right ranges. The question is, do any living things that we know of generate walls that can maintain 10 kPa?
Incoming energy and outgoing energy need to be balanced, and some organisms on Earth have evolved to maintain this balance. "Given this, it is plausible that highly insulating materials could be produced artificially from biogenic feedstocks or even directly by living organisms," the authors write. Volatile loss is another problem. A habitat that can't hold onto its atmosphere can't maintain the temperature and pressure necessary for liquid water.
"However, it is easily blocked by compounds such as amorphous silica and reduced iron, which attenuate UV in silicified biofilms and stromatolites today without blocking the visible radiation needed for photosynthesis," they write. In their paper, the authors cover other factors like cell size and the factors that limit the size of unicellular organisms and larger, more complex organisms. They conclude that fully autonomous living habitats can't be ruled out.
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Did alien life exist in hot water on Mars billions of years ago?Robert Lea is a science journalist in the U.K. who specializes in science, space, physics, astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology, quantum mechanics and technology. Rob's articles have been published in Physics World, New Scientist, Astronomy Magazine, All About Space and ZME Science.
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