Biodiversity on Alien Planets May Outshine Earth’s

0
1992
The artist's concept depicts Kepler-62f, a super-Earth exoplanet in the habitable zone of a star smaller and cooler than the sun, located about 1,200 light-years from Earth in the constellation Lyra. (Image: © NASA/Ames/JPL-Caltech)

Biodiversity on Some Alien Planets May Dwarf That of Earth

by Mark Wall Space.com

Earth’s dazzling biodiversity may not be so remarkable in the cosmic scheme of things, a new study suggests.

Alien planets with more favorable ocean-circulation patterns might support life in even greater abundance and variety than our own world does, the study determined.



“Life in Earth’s oceans depends on upwelling (upward flow), which returns nutrients from the dark depths of the ocean to the sunlit portions of the ocean where photosynthetic life lives,” study leader Stephanie Olson, of the University of Chicago, said in a statement.

“More upwelling means more nutrient resupply, which means more biological activity,” added Olson, who presented the new research today (Aug. 22) at the Goldschmidt Conference in Barcelona, Spain. “These are the conditions we need to look for on exoplanets.”

ATTENTION READERS

We See The World From All Sides and Want YOU To Be Fully Informed
In fact, intentional disinformation is a disgraceful scourge in media today. So to assuage any possible errant incorrect information posted herein, we strongly encourage you to seek corroboration from other non-VT sources before forming an educated opinion.

About VT - Policies & Disclosures - Comment Policy
Due to the nature of uncensored content posted by VT's fully independent international writers, VT cannot guarantee absolute validity. All content is owned by the author exclusively. Expressed opinions are NOT necessarily the views of VT, other authors, affiliates, advertisers, sponsors, partners, or technicians. Some content may be satirical in nature. All images are the full responsibility of the article author and NOT VT.