Since we began exploring space in 1957, we have found no evidence of extraterrestrial life. But this does not mean that it does not exist, hiding under a rock on Titan or swimming in the oceans of Europe. Concerned about the first contact, a group of scientists sounded the alarm, saying that for our own good, we are better preparing for an alien “invasion”.
This invasion will not happen with flying saucers and laser weapons, but with microorganisms, which spacecraft brought to Earth in search of samples from other worlds.
said Anthony Ricciardi, professor of invasion ecology and aquatic ecosystems. at McGill University in Canada on the Gizmodo website.
Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons, is one place in the solar system that could harbor life, which we intend to explore. Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SETI Institute
Ricciardi and colleagues expressed their concerns in an article titled “Planetary Biosecurity: Applying Invasive Science to Prevent Biological Contamination from Space Travel” published in the scientific journal BioScience. .
“The science of invasions has been applied to biosecurity both nationally and internationally. My colleagues and I believe that biosecurity can also be enhanced on a planetary or interplanetary scale.
Invasive science refers to a group of disciplines that study how an “alien” (meaning “native”) organism behaves and affects an isolated ecosystem after it reaches there. For example, how animals behave after the introduction of a new predator, or the effect of a disease on a group with which they have never been in contact.