Whether something ever lived on Mars is unknown. And the current environment, with hard temperatures, intense radiation and a scarce atmosphere, is not exactly beneficial for life. Despite the brutality of the red planet, lichen who inhabit some of the heaviest environments on earth could possibly survive there.
Lichens are symbions, or two organisms that have a cooperative relationship. There is a fungal component (most are around 90 percent fungus) and a photosynthetic component (algae or cyanobacteria). To see if some types of liches needed what is needed to survive on Mars, a team of researchers, led by botanist Kaja Skubała, used the Space Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences to expose the lichen species species Diploschistes Muscorum And Cetrarea Aculeata To simulate Mars circumstances.
“Our study is the first to show that the metabolism of the fungal partner in Lichen Symbiosis was active while he was in a Mars-like environment,” said the researchers in a study recently published in IMA fungus. “X -rays associated with solar flares and SEPs that reach Mars should not affect the potential habitability of lichen on this planet.”
Mars -Onising radiation threatens for most life forms because it can cause damage to a cellular level. It can also stand in the way of physical, genetic, morphological and biochemical processes, depending on the organism and the radiation level.
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Lichens have a lead when it comes to survival. They share characteristics with other organisms that can handle high levels of stress, including a low metabolism that do not need much in the way of food and a long service life. Just like tardigrades, lichen can stay in a dried state for a long time until they are rehydrated. Other liches adjustments to extreme circumstances are metabolites that screen UV rays and melanine pigons that also defend against radiation.
