9 suitable places to find extraterrestrial life

Mars, the Orion Nebula, Jupiter's satellites Europa are places where humans should pay attention in the search for life in the universe.

Discovery lists places where people can come to look for signs of life in space.

1. Callisto satellite of Jupiter

Photo: NASA.

Scientists from the US Aerospace Agency (NASA) once thought that Callisto was a " dead " satellite. But in 1996 and 1997, NASA's Galileo spacecraft flew through Jupiter's second largest satellite and found that Callisto's magnetic field changed. In 2001, the Galileo spotted an asteroid hitting Callisto, forming the Valhalla basin.

Normally, such large collisions will create strong tremors spreading throughout the planet, but the Galileo does not record any impact. This led scientists to hypothesize that an ocean reduced the impact of the collision. Due to the presence of water is synonymous with life, astronomers believe that if such an ocean actually existed on Callisto, complex life forms could be there.

2. Mars

Some previous research has shown that Mars used to be a planet with a warm climate and liquid water - two conditions necessary for life to form. In 2008, the US Phoenix spacecraft sent to Earth images of ice pieces beneath the surface soil. A year later American scientists discovered methane (CH4) in the atmosphere of Mars - a sign that the red planet may still be alive. Methane-producing bacteria are a weight of the earliest forms of life on Earth. If similar life forms exist on Mars, they may be hiding under the planet's surface.

3. Satellite of Jupiter Europa

Scientists predict that this object contains both simple microorganisms and complex life forms. For many years they believed in the theory that there was an oxygen-containing ocean beneath the frozen surface of Europa. In a 2009 study, expert Richard Greenberg of the University of Arizona in the United States estimated that oxygen in the ocean under the Europa surface is large enough to sustain about 3 million tons of microorganisms.

However, so far humans have not found clear evidence of the existence of an ocean under the icy surface of Europa.

4. Planets near a red giant star

A red giant star is dying . (Photo: hubpages.com).

Earth is the ideal place for life by its place. The earth is not too far nor too close to the sun. If it is too close, the water on our planet will evaporate, and if it is too far away, the earth will be a harsh cold place where water can only exist in the form of ice. Meanwhile liquid water is an extremely necessary material for life.

Before a red giant star dies, it explodes into a giant sphere, with its size and brightness rising very fast. It spits out into space where radiation can make a planet warm up. In 2005, a team of international astronomers discovered that, if light from such a star reaches the surface of frozen planets, their frozen surface will melt into liquid, create a basis for life to form.

Titan is in a position that does not receive sunlight, so its surface temperature is often at -190 degrees Celsius. In 2005, NASA's unmanned Huygens probe detected substance like liquid methane on the surface. This asteroid face. In May 2010, NASA's Cassini spacecraft discovered Titan containing a mixture of hydrogen and acetylene.

If life exists on Titan, it means that life can be present in a completely different environment. Therefore humanity will have to reconsider all knowledge of the activity of life.

6. Saturn's Enceladus satellite

Illustration of Saturn's Enceladus (above) and earth (below).Photo: adimuro.com.

When the Cassini spacecraft flew through one of Enceladus' ice and gas underground circuits in 2005, it detected carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen. These are essential elements to nourish living organisms. In addition, the temperature and the consistency of the air on this celestial surface also suggests that it may contain a source of warm water below the surface. However, the scientific community still has no evidence to confirm the existence of life here.

On Earth, microorganisms that exist in extreme conditions are found in craters under the sea and in the Arctic ice - where sunlight is not received. So scientists hope such microorganisms also exist on Enceladus.

7. Meteors

Humans account for about 22,000 meteorites that fall into the earth, many of which are composed of organic compounds.

In 1996, a group of scientists claimed they found compelling evidence of microscopic fossils on a meteorite from Mars found in Antarctica. This finding led biologists to hypothesize: Life may have existed on the red planet from about 3.6 billion years ago.

If the hypothesis is correct, it does not contradict the doctrine of 'the origin of life originating in the universe'. This theory suggests that life originates from a certain planet and "migrates" to the earth. On other planets, living organisms are just bacteria. They may stop temporarily when the habitat becomes harsh.

8. Orion Nebula

Photo: NASA.

In May 2010, scientists from the European Space Agency's Herschel Observatory found the Orion Nebula, 1,500 light-years away from Earth, could contain suitable organic substances for life. . The data collected by the telescope shows many types of life-supporting molecules that exist on the Orion Nebula, such as carbon monoxide (CO), formaldehyde (HCHO), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and hydrogen cyanide (HCN).

9. Planets outside the solar system

The Milky Way contains about 400 billion stars and planets. So it is very likely that billions of celestial bodies in the universe contain life.

We have only discovered extrasolar planets in the 90s of the 20th century. Every year, scientists discover dozens of planets that can contain organic compounds. For example, planet HD 209458b contains water, methane and carbon dioxide - basic elements for life - in the atmosphere. In addition, humankind still has an opportunity to find other planets suitable for the development of life in the universe.