Warning aliens follow spacecraft to Earth?

An international study has warned of a very real risk of "biological pollution" associated with human exploration of alien worlds.

While many scientists believe that the moon has. had life due to the crash of an Israeli spacecraft that brought countless "immortal" tardigrades (water bears) from Earth to this celestial body, one An international team of researchers also raises the opposite concern: Earth's life itself could be attacked by aliens.

Alien bacteria and viruses could threaten Earth

Research just published in BioScience highlights that the aliens that can bring danger are not monstrous creatures like movies, but very simple and small: microorganisms. Although small, they are enough to pose a threat of "interplanetary biological pollution".

Professor Anthony Ricciardi from MicGill University (Montreal, Canada), lead author of the study, told Live Science: "In the face of an increasing number of space missions, including those intended to deliver samples back to Earth, it is crucial to reduce the risk of biocontamination in both directions."

According to the authors, bacteria, although small, can have a significant impact on ecosystems. For example, a South American fungus called Austropuccinia psidii, introduced into Australia under unknown circumstances, but certainly due to human activity, is wreaking havoc on native eucalyptus trees. Ecosystems that are already vulnerable to alien species come from a place completely isolated from that region. The threat could be greater if interplanetary biological pollution occurs.

The crash of the Israeli spacecraft - named Beresheet - was cited by the research team as evidence. While it seems unlikely that the tardigrades would do any harm if they were indeed living well on the moon, as the object appears to be inhabited, it is a prime example of the danger that spacecraft could pose. bring.

Therefore, the research team to develop enhanced biosecurity solutions related to space travel, focusing on early detection of potential biological contaminants and rapid response processes upon detection. detect bacteria, foreign viruses or any suspicious substances "hitching" the spacecraft.

Space agencies around the world, especially NASA, are having a number of interplanetary exploration missions planned for the near future, such as landers heading to Jupiter's moon Europa, Titan's Saturn. Some spacecraft are also carrying out sampling missions from asteroids brought back to Earth such as JAXA's Hayabusa2 (Japan), NASA's OSIRIS-REx; or NASA's Mars rock sampling efforts.