Study: 'Search for life on Mars, Moon & other objects won't be easy, but not impossible'

According to a press release by Center for Astrophysics, Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) and Florida Institute of Techlogy (FIT), scientists may have figured out how to determine if life is or was existing on surface of Mars, Moon and or rocky objects in Universe.

Although search of life typically depends on water found on surface and atmosphere of objects, Dr Avi Loeb, Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor at Harvard and CfA astromer, and Dr Manasvi Lingam, Assistant Professor of astrobiology at FIT and CfA astromers say that absence of surface water doesn't prohibit potential for life elsewhere on rocky objects. Life can still exist in places like deep in subsurface biosphere of Mars and Moon. 

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"We examined wher conditions amenable to life could exist deep underneath surface of rocky objects like Moon or Mars at some point in ir histories and how scientists might go about searching for traces of past subsurface life on se objects. We kw that se searches will be technically challenging, but t impossible," said Lingam, le author on research. 

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Manasvi Lingam: 'Life could exist deep underneath surface'

Spilling furr details about possibility of life on Mars, Moon and or rocky objects of Universe, Lingam said that finding potential for existence of water has been biggest challenge for researchers. For water to exist in its liquid state, atmosphere is required to maintain a certain amount of pressure. When one moves towards deeper regions of rocky objects, upper layer starts to exert pressure which permits existence of liquid water in principle, said Lingam. "For instance, Mars does t currently have any longstanding bodies of water on its surface, but it is kwn to have subsurface lakes."

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research led by two professors aims to analyse 'thickness' of subsurface region where re is a possibility for water and life to exist. Loeb says that both Mars and Moon lack an atmosphere which allows liquid water to exist on surface, but at same time, warmer and pressurized regions under rocky surface allow liquid water to exist. study also found that a small amount of biological material still exists in a deep surface environment of Mars, Moon and or rocky objects. 

“Extremophilic organisms are capable of growth and reproduction at low subzero temperatures. y are found in places that are permanently cold on Earth, such as polar regions and deep sea, and might also exist on Moon or Mars, " said Loeb. 

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Researchers: 'Search of life on Mars and Moon won't be easy'

Researchers of study claimed that searching for life subsurface on Mars, Moon and or objects will t be easy as it requires a lot of search criterion and machinery which is t yet in use. Geological hotspots with high temperatures will have to be searched and drilling near equator where subsurface biosphere is located will be required. Without right machinery, drilling tens of kilometers under surface of Mars without exposing geological activity is difficult. But, it does t mean that finding life on Mars, Moon and or objects is impossible, said Loeb. 

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