If we find one on the moon, can we know if it originates from earth?
They will be waiting for us when we come back.
Cue the "accidental panspermia hypothesis" - the real (messy) world variant of panspermia[1].
> ”That distinction belongs to the DNA and microbes contained in the almost 100 bags of feces and urine left behind by American astronauts during the Apollo lunar landings from 1969-1972.”
Gross! Talk about littering and polluting a pristine environment. This is at least as bad as the climbers who leave poop on Everest, where it doesn’t biodegrade.
Is it really so hard to bring poop back with you? Were payload restrictions that tight on the return Apollo journeys?
Can this be flagged as clickbait? They are not living, they are in cryptobiosis. Even though experiments have shown that they can come back to life after a long time in this state, nothing can guarantee that they are actually still alive.