Space Lichens

moon_monkey writes "According to a report lichens - a composite of algae and fungi - can survive in space for up to two weeks. An experiment carried out by the European Space Agency saw two species of lichen carried into orbit and then exposed to the vacuum of space for nearly 15 days. These are the most complex form of life now known to have survived prolonged exposure to space. The experiment adds weight to the theory of panspermia - that life could somehow be transported between planets."

Comments

an organic spaceship patch kit?

[swanriversean]

FTA:
"Lichens have a tough mineral coating that could shield them from UV rays. They are also made from individual organisms layered on top of one another, so outer layers may provide protection for underlying cells. The organisms have already been shown to be capable of withstand high levels of UV radiation on Earth."

This is interesting, I wonder how well they the outer layers could protect things below? Would it be possible to use some lichen in a pinch to make a repair to part of a ship? Could this be the poor mans self-replicating nano robot patch kit?

I have no idea about these things, just an interesting prospect, I think.

Re:They needed space to test a vacuum?

[RoffleTheWaffle]

Substances like water, carbon, and oxygen are neat because they seem to be the most condusive to forming complex substances that make up the organic components of the bodies of living things. It's silly to think that there aren't living things that can exist without water, though. Or carbon. Or oxygen.

Theories about the possible environments wherein living things could exist are endless. Looking at the extremophilic algae and tube worms - That was the name you were looking for, I believe - here on Earth, we could see similar creatures living in the hot, highly acidic, CO2 rich environments of Venus. Lichens and other organisms tailored to exist only on the essentials, on the other hand, could thrive - and may actually exist - on Mars. (And if Mars was once like Earth, that theory certainly takes off, doesn't it?) Of course, those schools of thought only support organisms akin to the ones that exist here on Earth.

Meanwhile, the moons of Jupiter and Saturn provide a plethora of environments known to support life on Earth in some cases, but there are also theories that organisms could exist in the extreme cold of some of these celestial bodies by catalyzing acetylene and other volatile substances at extremely slow rates. If that theory were to pan out, then the idea of 'ice creatures from outer space' might not be too far off - and possibly a springboard for dozens of cheesy new sci-fi movies. (It'd certainly beat Spielburg's take on 'War of the Worlds'.)

While we're discussing theoretical models for living things unlike those that exist here on Earth, let's take a look at what we're made of - that all-important element carbon, I'm no chemistry expert, but doesn't boron nitride behave in a remarkably similar fashion to carbon? What about the possibility of a boron-based group of organisms? Or maybe plants and animals composed of different substances entirely? When one begins to consider the possibilities, it becomes immediately evident that they are indeed virtually endless.

The void of space may indeed host living things. Other worlds thought to be uninhabitable may also support life as well. I agree that it'd be pretty silly to disregard that possibility until we can conclusively prove that life simply can't thrive in these environments. Heck, maybe there's some kind of lichen out in some nebula somewhere, feeding off of plasma... Who knows.