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What 'Project Hail Mary' gets right about microbes

In the new movie “Project Hail Mary,” an alien microbe known as Astrophage dims the sun by consuming its solar energy, putting Earth at risk. The concept is fictional, but some Michigan State University scientists believe life on other planets isn’t at all far-fetched. Known as astrobiologists, they’re not searching for little green men. Matt Schrenk, a Michigan State University earth and environmental sciences associate professor, says “Project Hail Mary” is right about a key concept — if alien lifeforms exist, they’re most likely to be microbes.

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