If this discovery is recovered - it may be a "real bomb". At this point it has only created controversy-researchers.
An international team of scientists announced the discovery of the first living microorganism in the upper atmosphere (the stratosphere) - at an altitude of 16 km. They claim that the origin of the bacteria may be in outer space. It was discovered using a research balloon. It is possible that it "settled" there because of a comet that passed through the same atmospheric layer that surrounds the Earth.
The bacterium, claims the scientists' report, is not similar to Earth's bacteria. A team of biologists is now examining it from every angle and at this stage no further details are given. In the past, live mushroom spores were found at an altitude of 11 km.
About the discovery, a scientist of Indian origin Chandra and Karama-Singh from the University of Cardiff, in Wales, told CNN in an interview. However, researchers who know him personally claim that until the announcement is confirmed, it is appropriate to cast "certain doubt" on it because the reputation of the Indian researcher is controversial. In the past he tried to claim that the grains of interstellar dust are "dried bacteria" - and was unable to verify this.
Once again, NASA's Ames research center in California was quick to respond to Singh's announcement: "There is a certain degree of reservation and skepticism to be accepted. 16 km from the earth's surface is not too great a distance for terrestrial bacteria to settle there. They may also be there in a dormant state for millions of years. Bacteria and organic matter in general can be launched into space and distributed in the solar system, through meteors and comets."
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