Aero-space and Astro-cosmic Microbial Studies: A Vulgar Epithet Yet an Unattended Potential Nursing/Distribution Hub of Pathogenic Strains

Introduction: The ubiquity of microorganisms has in recent times extended relevance from the physical environment to outer space/cosmic environment. Such outer space/cosmic environments were over time reported microbe free, however recent report showed otherwise implicating space/cosmic travel. Methods: Diverse interest-based investigators have raised unanswered questions while others yet remain probable. Bio-scientific evaluation of astro-cosmic dynamics possesses the potential of revealing the appropriate status, arrangement, and/or position of microbes especially as global drives focus on controlling microbial spread/proliferation. Results: The study determines microbes in space and astro-cosmic environment as vulgar epithet yet an unattended potential nursing/distribution hub of pathogenic strains applying science mapping review tools. Using the Preferred-Reporting-Items-for-Systematic-Reviews-and-Meta- Analyses (PRISMA), major scientific databases (Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed) were searched for required and related data on astro-cosmic studies. A 7-decadal evaluation of authors' published documents using the non-parametric ANOVA test (Kruskal-Wallis H test) and Lotka’s model was applied. Among the three searched databases, Web of Science ranked least in retrieved documents (130) followed by PubMed (331) and Scopus (409) with total documents retrieved as 693 between 1954-2023. Further results revealed that production/publication distribution was significant only in the first decade using Lotk’s model with an annual growth rate of 5.23%. It was also observed that more than 40 topics of interest/conceptual thematic were trending in association with astro-microbiological studies. Conclusion: A focus on these topics and their associated themes possess the potential for understanding the future position of the microbes in outer space, the distribution of potentially pathogenic strains from outer space and necessitates global interest for such studies.