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AnonTechie [soylentnews.org] writes:

Panspermia hypothesis proposes that life travels between stars and planets, surviving the effects of interstellar journeys and finally settling down on a planetary surface, beginning new evolutionary processes. The microorganisms can be transported to random destinations by asteroids, comets or meteoroids or distributed intentionally by some intelligent alien civilization. But with Earth as the only example of a life-bearing planet, the essential question is: If panspermia really occurs, how could we detect it?

"It is possible for life to be carried by rocks which are ejected from one planet, after an impact by an asteroid, and land on another planet. This can happen by chance if the two planets are in the same planetary system or, with smaller likelihood, if they are in different systems. Although this process is possible, we have no evidence for it," said Abraham Loeb, chair of the Department of Astronomy at the Harvard University, in an interview with Phys.org.
Loeb is the co-author of a paper published in Astrophysical Journal Letters suggesting that if life spreads via panspermia, it does it in a characteristic pattern that we could identify.

His research shows that this pattern would be similar to the outbreak of an epidemic. The panspermia theory and the model introduced by Loeb and his colleagues may be the keystone in the search for extraterrestrial life for future generations. Moreover, Loeb believes that we will soon find traces of alien microorganisms.

http://phys.org/news/2015-10-life-universe.html [phys.org]

[Abstract/Paper]: http://arxiv.org/abs/1507.05614 [arxiv.org]

[Also Covered By]: Life Might Spread Across Universe Like an 'Epidemic' in New Math Theory [space.com]

[Related]: Panspermia and the Origin of Life on Earth [panspermia-theory.com]

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