Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Kepler's First Law of Planetary Motion01:10

Kepler's First Law of Planetary Motion

5.7K
In the early 17th century, German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler postulated three laws for the motion of planets in the solar system. He formulated his first two laws based on the observations of his forebears, Nikolaus Copernicus and Tycho Brahe.
Polish astronomer Nikolaus Copernicus put forth a theory that stated a heliocentric model for the solar system. According to this heliocentric theory, all the planets, including Earth, orbit the Sun in circular orbits.
On the other hand,...
5.7K
Kepler's Second Law of Planetary Motion01:29

Kepler's Second Law of Planetary Motion

5.4K
In the early 17th century, German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler postulated three laws for the motion of planets in the solar system. His first law states that all planets orbit the Sun in an elliptical orbit, with the Sun at one of the ellipse's foci. Therefore, the distance of a planet from the Sun varies throughout its revolution around the Sun.
While in an elliptical orbit, the total energy of the planet is conserved. Therefore, the planet slows down when it is at apogee and...
5.4K
Kepler's Third Law of Planetary Motion01:18

Kepler's Third Law of Planetary Motion

4.4K
In the early 17th century, German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler postulated three laws for the motion of planets in the solar system. In 1909, he formulated his first two laws based on the observations of his forebears, Nikolaus Copernicus and Tycho Brahe. However, in 1918, he published his third law of planetary motion, which gives a precise mathematical relationship between a planet's average distance from the Sun and the amount of time it takes to revolve around the Sun. It...
4.4K
Conditions on Early Earth02:06

Conditions on Early Earth

102.3K
Around 4 billion years ago, oceans began to condense on earth while volcanic eruptions released nitrogen, carbon dioxide, methane, ammonia, and hydrogen into the primordial atmosphere. However, organisms with the characteristics of life were not initially present on earth. Scientists have used experimentation to determine how organisms evolved that could grow, reproduce, and maintain an internal environment.
102.3K
Diversity of Protists I01:15

Diversity of Protists I

1.6K
Excavata is a diverse group of protists that includes both chemoorganotrophic and phototrophic species, with some thriving in anaerobic environments. Among the key groups within Excavata are diplomonads and parabasalids, which are flagellated protists that lack mitochondria and chloroplasts. These microorganisms typically inhabit anoxic environments, such as the intestines of animals, where they exist either symbiotically or as parasites, relying on fermentation for energy production. Some...
1.6K
Acceleration due to Gravity on Other Planets01:24

Acceleration due to Gravity on Other Planets

5.0K
The gravitational acceleration of an object near the Earth's surface is called the acceleration due to gravity. It can be measured by conducting simple experiments on Earth. However, such an experiment is impossible to conduct on the surface of other planets.
Astronomical observations are thus used to measure the acceleration due to gravity on other planets. This can be determined by observing the effect of a planet's gravity on objects close to it. The crucial factor that helps in this...
5.0K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Upper Atmosphere Dynamics and Drivers of Volatiles Loss from Terrestrial-Type (Exo)Planets.

Space science reviews·2026
Same author

Disappearance of a massive star in the Andromeda Galaxy due to formation of a black hole.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2026
Same author

Increased and varied radiation during the Sun's encounters with cold clouds in the last 10 million years.

Scientific reports·2026
Same author

Water Versus Land on Temperate Rocky Planets.

Space science reviews·2026
Same author

On the coincidence between the close passage of HD7977 and the Pliocene-Pleistocene transition.

Scientific reports·2025
Same author

Rosalind Franklin Society Proudly Announces the 2024 Award Recipient for <i>Astrobiology</i>.

Astrobiology·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 28, 2026

Surface Mapping of Earth-like Exoplanets using Single Point Light Curves
06:48

Surface Mapping of Earth-like Exoplanets using Single Point Light Curves

Published on: May 10, 2020

4.0K

Enhanced interplanetary panspermia in the TRAPPIST-1 system.

Manasvi Lingam1,2, Abraham Loeb2

  • 1John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138; manasvi@seas.harvard.edu.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|June 15, 2017
PubMed
Summary

Interplanetary panspermia, the transfer of life between planets, is significantly more likely in the TRAPPIST-1 system than between Earth and Mars. This suggests a higher probability of abiogenesis and more life-bearing planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system.

Keywords:
astrobiologyexoplanetsorigin of lifepanspermia

More Related Videos

Translating Ribosome Affinity Purification TRAP to Investigate Arabidopsis thaliana Root Development at a Cell Type-Specific Scale
09:41

Translating Ribosome Affinity Purification TRAP to Investigate Arabidopsis thaliana Root Development at a Cell Type-Specific Scale

Published on: May 14, 2020

13.0K
Author Spotlight: Investigating Wolbachia-Induced Thelytokous Parthenogenesis and Genetic Toolkit Development Through RNA Interference
05:29

Author Spotlight: Investigating Wolbachia-Induced Thelytokous Parthenogenesis and Genetic Toolkit Development Through RNA Interference

Published on: November 21, 2023

1.9K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Feb 28, 2026

Surface Mapping of Earth-like Exoplanets using Single Point Light Curves
06:48

Surface Mapping of Earth-like Exoplanets using Single Point Light Curves

Published on: May 10, 2020

4.0K
Translating Ribosome Affinity Purification TRAP to Investigate Arabidopsis thaliana Root Development at a Cell Type-Specific Scale
09:41

Translating Ribosome Affinity Purification TRAP to Investigate Arabidopsis thaliana Root Development at a Cell Type-Specific Scale

Published on: May 14, 2020

13.0K
Author Spotlight: Investigating Wolbachia-Induced Thelytokous Parthenogenesis and Genetic Toolkit Development Through RNA Interference
05:29

Author Spotlight: Investigating Wolbachia-Induced Thelytokous Parthenogenesis and Genetic Toolkit Development Through RNA Interference

Published on: November 21, 2023

1.9K

Area of Science:

  • Astrobiology
  • Planetary Science
  • Theoretical Ecology

Background:

  • The TRAPPIST-1 system, with its seven Earth-sized planets orbiting an ultracool dwarf star, presents a unique environment for studying panspermia.
  • Panspermia, the hypothesis that life exists throughout the universe, is a key consideration in astrobiology.
  • Understanding the conditions for abiogenesis (the origin of life) is crucial for assessing habitability.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To model and estimate the probability of interplanetary panspermia within the TRAPPIST-1 system.
  • To compare the likelihood of panspermia in TRAPPIST-1 with the Earth-to-Mars scenario.
  • To assess the impact of panspermia on abiogenesis and the potential for multiple life-bearing planets.

Main Methods:

  • Development of a simple model for estimating interplanetary panspermia probability.
  • Application of theoretical ecology models to quantify species transfer and life-bearing planet numbers.
  • Proposal of observational metrics for detecting panspermia-initiated life.

Main Results:

  • Panspermia is potentially orders of magnitude more likely in the TRAPPIST-1 system compared to the Earth-to-Mars case.
  • The probability of abiogenesis is enhanced on TRAPPIST-1 planets due to increased panspermia rates.
  • Higher numbers of transferred species and life-bearing planets are predicted for TRAPPIST-1.

Conclusions:

  • The TRAPPIST-1 system offers a promising environment for panspermia and the potential for widespread life.
  • The study provides a framework for future observational searches for life in exoplanetary systems.
  • The findings have broader implications for understanding habitability on exoplanets and exomoons.