The clue to our Martian origin is an oxidized form of the element molybdenum, which may have been crucial to the origin of life, likely available on Mars long ago, but unavailable on Earth.
Evidence is building that Earth life originated on Mars and was brought to this planet aboard a meteorite, said biochemist Steven Benner of The Westheimer Institute for Science and Technology in Florida.
It’s only when molybdenum becomes highly oxidized that it is able to influence how early life formed, This form of molybdenum couldn’t have been available on Earth at the time life first began, because 3 billion years ago, the surface of the Earth had very little oxygen, but Mars did.
It’s yet another piece of evidence which makes it more likely life came to Earth on a Martian meteorite, rather than starting on this planet.
Organic compounds are the building blocks of life, but they need a little help to make things happen. Simply adding energy such as heat or light turns a soup of organic molecules into a tarlike substance. That's where oxidized molybdenum comes in. Inserting it or boron, another element, into the mix would help organics make the leap to life.
Read more - http://www.space.com/22577-earth-life-from-mars-theory.html
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