If life is capable of spreading from planet to planet — a concept known as "panspermia" — then we might be able to detect it, even if we don't know what we're looking for, new research suggests.
Astronomers are on the hunt for life beyond Earth. While there are several promising locations within the solar system, the sheer abundance of exoplanets means that we are most likely to find life on a planet orbiting another star. There are more than 5,000 confirmed exoplanets to date, according to NASA — and that number is always rising.
