Space travel - Gerst: There could be traces of earthly life on the moon
Astronaut Alexander Gerst hopes that missions to the moon could provide more information about the development of life on Earth.
"Perhaps we will find meteorites on the moon that came from the Earth, i.e. rock fragments that were catapulted out of the Earth by a large impact at some point in the past and then landed on the moon," Gerst told the German Press Agency in Berlin. The 47-year-old is a possible candidate for the planned US missions "Artemis 4" and "Artemis 5" to the moon in a few years' time.
Earth rocks on the moon could possibly contain traces of early terrestrial life, such as microbes, explained Gerst. "That would be extremely exciting." On Earth, such traces could hardly be found due to plate tectonics. The moon, on the other hand, has been geologically quiet for billions of years.
Thrown up, rolled over, melted down
Tectonic movements cause rocks on Earth, including all the traces they contain, to be thrown up, rolled over and melted down in a continuous process. "We have almost nothing from the early days of the Earth, and what little we do have is heavily overprinted geologically," said Matthias Nieuwenhuis from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Göttingen. "On the moon, on the other hand, nothing happens."
According to current knowledge, the oldest evidence of life on Earth is around 3.5 billion years old. According to current assumptions, the moon was formed at least 4.46 billion years ago from debris from the collision of the primordial Earth with the Mars-sized celestial body Theia. It could therefore be a valuable archive of early life on our planet.
Material from the Earth on the moon
Analyses had shown that a moonstone brought to Earth by astronauts during the "Apollo" missions in 1971 could contain material from Earth. The composition of the small fragment is typical for the Earth, but unusual for the moon, explained Nieuwenhuis. According to estimates, around 36 to 61 kilograms of Earth rock per square kilometer could have reached the moon in the last 3.9 billion years alone, and in certain places even half a ton per square kilometer.
At around three kilometers per second, the speed of impact of such material is rather low, explained the planetary researcher. "That's why fossils from the Earth's early history could actually still be found there." Traces of early Earth microbes may have been preserved on the moon to this day in the form of biological and chemical markers.
Astronaut versus robot
Nieuwenhuis believes it is realistic that an astronaut and not a robot will find such rocks at some point. "A suitably trained astronaut has a special eye for their surroundings: what doesn't fit here, what is unusual?" He can head straight for unusual rocks, which increases the chance of a spectacular find.
Read also:
- Snow chaos further restricts Bavaria
- "Zoltan" sweeps across the country - disruptions to rail traffic
- "Zoltan" brings masses of water, rail chaos and suspected tornadoes
- Lifestyle 2023 from "Breathless" to cinnamon buns
Source: www.stern.de
