Discussions over the origin of life on Earth are bound to start some intense, emotional debates. But just because it’s a subject that may be very personal for people doesn’t mean we should stop trying to find possible new answers.
UK scientists have just found some evidence supporting a theory so out of this world it makes others look unimaginative by comparison. A strange, tiny object may suggest that Earth was actually seeded by extra-terrestrials to create life.
It sounds nuts, but first let’s at least look at the findings. Astrobiologist Milton Wainwright and a team of researchers at the University of Buckingham recently discovered a microscopic metal sphere in the dust from the team’s atmospheric balloon. Specifically, the hair-length ball is made of titanium and vanadium with a viscous liquid, and most intriguingly, a biological core.
What on Earth would a ball filled with alien goo be doing, well, on Earth? According to the theory of “directed panspermia,” coined by Nobel Prize winner Francis Crick, such objects may have been used by life forms from outside our Solar System to bring creation to our planet. “One theory is it was sent to Earth by some unknown civilization in order to continue seeding the planet with life,” said Wainwright in an interview while referencing Crick’s work. And considering Crick is famous for co-discovering DNA along with James Watson in 1953, he knows a thing or two about life on Earth.
This also might sound familiar to proponents of the “Ancient Astronauts” theory outlined in Erich von Däniken’s book Chariots of the Gods? In the book, Däniken proposes that the beings various primitive civilizations interpreted as gods, from Anubis to Zeus, were actually advanced alien beings spreading their knowledge, perhaps on the planet they originally spread life on. This is also how Marvel’s Thor movies manage to have Norse mythological deities flying around without running into weird religious issues. They’re not gods, they’re aliens.
However, when you’re arguing for a theory as far out as “life on Earth was caused by alien farmers,” something that, if true, would fundamentally change our basic understanding of our very existence, you should be prepared for a lot of skepticism. Previous attempts to support this hypothesis, like meteorites supposedly filled with alien fossils, have failed to convince the vast majority of mainstream scientists. And as for this new discovery goes, the sphere’s true use remains unknown while its alien origin is still just an educated guess at best.
But if this all does turn out to be for real, and we are just one big glorious alien crop, let’s just hope whoever, or whatever, planted us doesn’t come back to reap what they sowed.
