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lazideyesterday at 1:55 PM6 repliesview on HN

Huh? Those smaller rocks would be even more irradiated, as they have no atmosphere?

They’d also have to contend with re-entry.


Replies

Sharlinyesterday at 3:13 PM

It would’ve been specifically asteroids from beyond the "frost line", where it’s cold enough for volatile substances to coalesce and stay solid.

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BinaryAsteroidyesterday at 2:02 PM

The smaller rocks are composed of those materials in solid state (e.g., ice not water). They are less irradiated as they are further away from the Sun (think the asteroid belt and beyond). Atmospheric entry (if that's what you mean) is irrelevant. What matters here is the transport of materials from a place where they could have formed, to a place where they couldn't.

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DoctorOetkertoday at 8:21 AM

Extra terrestrial propagation of life, if real would have evolved to have non-zero survival rates in interstellar radiation regimes and timescales.

The fragility of life-as-we-know-it that has undergone serial passage in an environment largely shielded from radiation, is not necessarily representative of putative life-forms carried by little rocks in space.

I am neither convinced for nor against the idea that life may have been carried over by interstellar rocks: on the one hand, its a major promiscuity between celestial bodies within star systems, galaxies, etc. on the other hand since we haven't discovered other life forms yet we have no idea on the missing probability densities of life in the bulk of the universe, so the Bayesian catapult can swing either way, we just lack the data for now.

kmaitreysyesterday at 3:11 PM

Those smaller rocks are in the outer solar system, where the solar irradiation is lower. But the way they are composed is lots of ices (volatile molecules in solid form) being built on the silicate/graphite refractory core. The ices remain preserved in the environment provided by the outer solar system.

bahmbooyesterday at 11:23 PM

Meteorites are generally cold when they reach the surface of the earth. The heat of reentry is very brief and generally just on the surface. That's my understanding.

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general_revealyesterday at 7:16 PM

Exactly. The attempt to try to explain creation through science is often more absurd than the simple truth.

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