Experimental evidence for the potential impact ejection of viable microorganisms from Mars and Mars-like planets

Dieter Stoeffler; Gerda Horneck; Sieglinde Ott; Ulrich Hornemann; Charles S. Cockell; Ralf Moeller; Cornelia Meyer; Jean-Pierre de Vera; Joerg Fritz; Natalia A. Artemieva

doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2006.11.007

Experimental evidence for the potential impact ejection of viable microorganisms from Mars and Mars-like planets

Dieter Stoeffler^*, Gerda Horneck, Sieglinde Ott, Ulrich Hornemann, Charles S. Cockell, Ralf Moeller, Cornelia Meyer, Jean-Pierre de Vera, Joerg Fritz, Natalia A. Artemieva

^*Corresponding author for this work

School of Physics and Astronomy

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Bacterial spores (Bacillus subtilis), cyanobacteria (Chroococcidiopsis sp.), and lichen (Xanthoria elegans) embedded in martian analogue rock (gabbro) were exposed to shock pressures between 5 and 50 GPa which is the range of pressures observed in martian meteorites. The survival of Bacillus subtilis and Xanthoria elegans up to 45 GPa and of Chroococcidiopsis sp. up to 10 GPa supports the possibility of transfer of life inside meteoroids between Mars and Earth and it implies the potential for the transfer of life from any Mars-like planet to other habitable planets in the same stellar system. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	585-588
Number of pages	4
Journal	Icarus
Volume	186
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2006.11.007
Publication status	Published - Feb 2007

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

Mars
impact processes
astrobiology
meteorites
experimental techniques
MARTIAN METEORITE DELIVERY
BACTERIAL-SPORES
EARLY EARTH
SHOCK METAMORPHISM
ASTEROID IMPACTS
SURVIVAL
ORIGIN
SPACE
LIFE
TERRESTRIAL

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10.1016/j.icarus.2006.11.007

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@article{7bb3c14cbf1545669fb51c682588252b,

title = "Experimental evidence for the potential impact ejection of viable microorganisms from Mars and Mars-like planets",

abstract = "Bacterial spores (Bacillus subtilis), cyanobacteria (Chroococcidiopsis sp.), and lichen (Xanthoria elegans) embedded in martian analogue rock (gabbro) were exposed to shock pressures between 5 and 50 GPa which is the range of pressures observed in martian meteorites. The survival of Bacillus subtilis and Xanthoria elegans up to 45 GPa and of Chroococcidiopsis sp. up to 10 GPa supports the possibility of transfer of life inside meteoroids between Mars and Earth and it implies the potential for the transfer of life from any Mars-like planet to other habitable planets in the same stellar system. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.",

keywords = "Mars, impact processes, astrobiology, meteorites, experimental techniques, MARTIAN METEORITE DELIVERY, BACTERIAL-SPORES, EARLY EARTH, SHOCK METAMORPHISM, ASTEROID IMPACTS, SURVIVAL, ORIGIN, SPACE, LIFE, TERRESTRIAL",

author = "Dieter Stoeffler and Gerda Horneck and Sieglinde Ott and Ulrich Hornemann and Cockell, \{Charles S.\} and Ralf Moeller and Cornelia Meyer and \{de Vera\}, Jean-Pierre and Joerg Fritz and Artemieva, \{Natalia A.\}",

year = "2007",

month = feb,

doi = "10.1016/j.icarus.2006.11.007",

language = "English",

volume = "186",

pages = "585--588",

journal = "Icarus",

issn = "0019-1035",

publisher = "Academic Press",

number = "2",

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TY - JOUR

T1 - Experimental evidence for the potential impact ejection of viable microorganisms from Mars and Mars-like planets

AU - Stoeffler, Dieter

AU - Horneck, Gerda

AU - Ott, Sieglinde

AU - Hornemann, Ulrich

AU - Cockell, Charles S.

AU - Moeller, Ralf

AU - Meyer, Cornelia

AU - de Vera, Jean-Pierre

AU - Fritz, Joerg

AU - Artemieva, Natalia A.

PY - 2007/2

Y1 - 2007/2

N2 - Bacterial spores (Bacillus subtilis), cyanobacteria (Chroococcidiopsis sp.), and lichen (Xanthoria elegans) embedded in martian analogue rock (gabbro) were exposed to shock pressures between 5 and 50 GPa which is the range of pressures observed in martian meteorites. The survival of Bacillus subtilis and Xanthoria elegans up to 45 GPa and of Chroococcidiopsis sp. up to 10 GPa supports the possibility of transfer of life inside meteoroids between Mars and Earth and it implies the potential for the transfer of life from any Mars-like planet to other habitable planets in the same stellar system. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

AB - Bacterial spores (Bacillus subtilis), cyanobacteria (Chroococcidiopsis sp.), and lichen (Xanthoria elegans) embedded in martian analogue rock (gabbro) were exposed to shock pressures between 5 and 50 GPa which is the range of pressures observed in martian meteorites. The survival of Bacillus subtilis and Xanthoria elegans up to 45 GPa and of Chroococcidiopsis sp. up to 10 GPa supports the possibility of transfer of life inside meteoroids between Mars and Earth and it implies the potential for the transfer of life from any Mars-like planet to other habitable planets in the same stellar system. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

KW - Mars

KW - impact processes

KW - astrobiology

KW - meteorites

KW - experimental techniques

KW - MARTIAN METEORITE DELIVERY

KW - BACTERIAL-SPORES

KW - EARLY EARTH

KW - SHOCK METAMORPHISM

KW - ASTEROID IMPACTS

KW - SURVIVAL

KW - ORIGIN

KW - SPACE

KW - LIFE

KW - TERRESTRIAL

U2 - 10.1016/j.icarus.2006.11.007

DO - 10.1016/j.icarus.2006.11.007

M3 - Article

SN - 0019-1035

VL - 186

SP - 585

EP - 588

JO - Icarus

JF - Icarus

IS - 2

ER -

Experimental evidence for the potential impact ejection of viable microorganisms from Mars and Mars-like planets

Abstract

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

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