The Titan Moon impact craters – which NASA once compared to a second Earth with identical mountains, rivers, and lakes – may have been full of life.
Presented at the Moon and Planetary Science Conference in Texas (United States), an international team of researchers brought together the results obtained by reinventing the extraterrestrial effects on Saturn’s Titan moon.
Research team member Dr Léa Bonnefoy from the University of Paris (France) said: “If you have a lot of liquid water that creates a temporary pool of hot water on the surface, then you can have favorable conditions. ; if you have organic matter moving from the surface to the ocean, it will make the ocean a bit more habitable. “
According to a summary published by Science magazine, evidence of frozen lakes and organic hydrocarbons on the Titan moon has long been identified by NASA. New research suggests that an asteroid or comet crashing into the moon could theoretically mix these two components, creating life. And it is the ancient craters that will become the “cradle” of life.
According to Dr Alvaro Penteado Crósta of the University of Campinas (Brazil), the theory was redefined by his team using a model of Menrva, the crater 425 km wide and formed about 1 billion ago. years on Titan. The heat from the impact would create a lake, which would last around 1 million years before freezing due to Titan’s cold, but it is time for microbial life to emerge – and may still exist under today’s ice. ‘hui.
Another 90 km wide collision crater named Selk is also considered a good candidate. They think Selk will at least contain fossil bacteria preserved in ice. Selk is also an upcoming target for NASA’s Dragonfly mission – bringing a nuclear-powered dragonfly drone to Titan by 2036. This moon has already been compared by NASA to a second Earth, as data shows it has the same topography and the same factors as our planet. .
