Could life have originated in comets?


Could life have originated in comets?

 Some scientists would go even further and claim that life itself was formed inside comets. All the necessary ingredients were there, and radioactive decay could have produced the heat necessary to melt ice, producing a supply of liquid water within a comet's core. Radical claims such as these can only be checked by examining cometry matter, which is precisely the task given to Rosetta, a European space probe which is due to approach comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014. Rosetta has a small (90 cm) lander, named Philae. To make sure it doesn't bounce back into space in the comet's almost imperceptible gravity, the lander will attach itself to the ground by means of harpoons. Philae will then be able to use a small drill to remove samples from the comet's crust, which will then be analysed in the lander's small, automated laboratory.

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