RE: Space Water Bears
February 23, 2013 at 12:30 pm
(This post was last modified: February 23, 2013 at 12:41 pm by Anomalocaris.)
Targigrades are not the only creatures that can survive direct exposure to outer space. Many bacterial life have been shown to survive and remain reproductively viable much longer, years in cases, of direct exposure to space on unsanitized space craft components. Laboratory experiments also show many bacterial life can tolerate far more extreme conditions then even targigrades.
As for targigrades on other planets, 1. Even targigrades have not been shown to be come clise to bring hardy enough to survive thousands of years in outer space required for panspermia.
2. Targigrades are multicellular organism made up of complex eucaryotic cells. As such they are high up on the ladder of earthly cellular evolution. They are nowhere close to the base or irigin of tree of life, such that it might be plausible that similar creatures to targigrades might be found elsewhere under the panspermia hypothesis.
As for targigrades on other planets, 1. Even targigrades have not been shown to be come clise to bring hardy enough to survive thousands of years in outer space required for panspermia.
2. Targigrades are multicellular organism made up of complex eucaryotic cells. As such they are high up on the ladder of earthly cellular evolution. They are nowhere close to the base or irigin of tree of life, such that it might be plausible that similar creatures to targigrades might be found elsewhere under the panspermia hypothesis.
