Cosmic rays could be a vital source of energy for life on icy moons, on Mars, or even on rogue planets that wander alone between stars; it's possible, scientists say, that the phenomenon could create a "radiolytic habitable zone" on what are otherwise some of the coldest, darkest worlds known.
"For this mechanism to work, you just need a planetary surface with a thin or no atmosphere, irrespective of its distance from the sun," Dimitra Atri of New York University Abu Dhabi, told Space.com. "This would expand the possibilities of life existing on distant and rogue planets."
