Can a Virus survive in space? Random thoughts

[Law]

Could it survive in a meteorite in space?? Would it burn up and be destroyed before it hit the earth??

 

 

also...what are the chances that we have seen every element in outerspace?? maybe theres something out there we could digest that keeps us awake for 7 days straight!

 

there is probably a solar system with multiple earths out there...warring planets...we probably literally cant IMAGINE whats out there

 

while i think its a good (overall peaceful) time to enjoy life i would like to know humanitys fate...i doubt living 10 generations on a giant spaceship in total darkness with no beaches or snow is much fun...im sure billions would be left behind...and even if we did land on a green planet...who knows how our immune system will hold up...so many questions..so little time

[Moontanman]

Could it survive in a meteorite in space?? Would it burn up and be destroyed before it hit the earth??

 

 

Lot of depends ons here but for the most part the best answer is no.

 

also...what are the chances that we have seen every element in outerspace?? maybe theres something out there we could digest that keeps us awake for 7 days straight!

 

 

The chances are we know 100% of the elements to be found in space or anyplace else. we can make elements that do not naturally exist but they are all radioactive and exist only for very short periods of time.

 

there is probably a solar system with multiple earths out there...warring planets...we probably literally cant IMAGINE whats out there

 

 

We can imagine quite a bit but lots of things are possible.

 

while i think its a good (overall peaceful) time to enjoy life i would like to know humanitys fate...i doubt living 10 generations on a giant spaceship in total darkness with no beaches or snow is much fun...im sure billions would be left behind...and even if we did land on a green planet...who knows how our immune system will hold up...so many questions..so little time

 

Generation type space ships would probably come closer to resembling small worlds than closed containers for such long journeys. More likely any such passengers would stay inside their enclosed worlds and just use the raw materials of the new star system to make more of their own type worlds, planets would be scary places for them after generations of living in a small safe world of the habitat ship.

[Law]

thats why i like u guys! besides God talk i could ask u anything and get a serious answer i joined these boards at 17...(ill be 23 tomorrow) and i still lurk around every couple of months to feed my imagination...LONG LIVE SFN!

[VedekPako]

Could it survive in a meteorite in space?? Would it burn up and be destroyed before it hit the earth??

 

It's possible. Blast debris from the KT impact could have ejected a Dinosaur Era Virus; only to have it hit Earth millions of years later. Permian bacteria have been brought back to life.

 

An ancient Viruses would probably fall victim to more advance immune systems and the lack of a good host (after all, most of their hosts are extinct).

 

Worried about Alien Viruses? Well, good news, material(besides light and radiation) from another star system running into earth is rare. You have a better chance of winning the lottery a hundred times in a row than that happening. Even if it did and it actually had alien microbes, most of which would die in our oxygen rich atmosphere or find their silicone base is not compatible with our carbon base.

[Mr Skeptic]

An alien virus is almost guaranteed to be harmless. Ever see a computer (or a horse if you prefer) catch HIV? A virus cannot reproduce on its own, and cannot attack its host. It depends on weaknesses of the host to bring it in, into its body and then into its cells, and then it depends on the cell's machinery to build copies of itself. Failure on any of these points, not of the virus to be "strong" but of the host to have a weakness specific to the virus, means that the virus is harmless.

[TheRobotanist]

Viruses can not survive in space. Viruses require a host in order to live, and most viruses can only survive for a few hours without a proper host cell. Bacteria on the other hand may be able to survive. Some species have been shown to go into dormant states when there is a lack of nutrients, and these bacteria can survive in extreme environments.

 

As for alien viruses, initially we would be immune. Viruses are extremely specific and look for certain cells within certain hosts. Viruses use receptors located on the plasma membrane of the cell. And these receptors are ones needed for the survival of the cell, so they can't simply evolve to a point where they no longer have the receptor. We'd be immune until a point where the virus has mutated and performs a "species jump" in which it can now infect humans. We've seen it on our planet. Ebola and Swine flu mutated to the point where they could bind to human receptors in certain cells.

[Fake Dr. Sullivan]

Could it survive in a meteorite in space?? Would it burn up and be destroyed before it hit the earth??

 

 

also...what are the chances that we have seen every element in outerspace?? maybe theres something out there we could digest that keeps us awake for 7 days straight!

 

there is probably a solar system with multiple earths out there...warring planets...we probably literally cant IMAGINE whats out there

 

while i think its a good (overall peaceful) time to enjoy life i would like to know humanitys fate...i doubt living 10 generations on a giant spaceship in total darkness with no beaches or snow is much fun...im sure billions would be left behind...and even if we did land on a green planet...who knows how our immune system will hold up...so many questions..so little time

 

 

All of this is pure speculation. In reality, we see no scientific evidence for any of the above statements. There is no other solar system with multiple earths, and in all likelihood, what we have seen from quantum red shifts, the Earth appears to be at the center of the Universe.

[insane_alien]

what we have seen from quantum red shifts, the Earth appears to be at the center of the Universe.

 

actually, this implies the universe HAS no center. the universe would look pretty much the same from wherever you are.

 

and viruses can 'survive'(there is debate as to whether they are alive in the first place) space. as can bacteria. this has been proven by experimentation.

[Sisyphus]

what we have seen from quantum red shifts, the Earth appears to be at the center of the Universe.

 

This isn't true. The universe does not have a center.

[Mr Skeptic]

It's true that Earth appears to be at the center of the universe, however the theory says that everywhere appears to be the center of the universe as well.