[donna]

donna asked the Naked Scientists:

What is the possibility of finding life in another world?

What do you think?

[DoctorBeaver]

I'd like to break your question into 2 parts...

1) What is the possibility of there being life on other worlds?
2) What is the possibility of us finding it?

Given the number of other worlds that must exist in the universe I believe it would be extremely arrogant of us to think that ourts is the only one that has life. Whether we ever find it is a totally different matter. The chances of us ever travelling to any but the very nearest stars is remote, to say the least; and I include robotic probes in that. I wouldn't like to hazard a guess as to whether there are any stars within that area that would have life-bearing planets.

[blakestyger]

Currently, there is emerging a relatively new branch of science called Astrobiology (often dubbed the hottest area of scientific research today) and there are a number of academics who have devoted careers to it - so they think there could be.
Their premise is that there probably is life out there but, to quote the pointy-eared one "not as we know it". So they are now deciding what defines life so that, should we encounter it, we could recognise it.
If you wish to pursue this further try Lewis Dartnell's book Life in the Universe, published by Oneworld, Beginner's Guides.

[neilep]

Pending natural disasters and us blowing ourselves up and/or destroying our own planet I would hope that we may find intelligent life here on Earth first.



I can not comprehend that there is not life (of any kind) elsewhere in the Universe/Univereses.

I am willing to place a bet....a whole 50p that life does exist elsewhere...in fact,,I can';t wait for indications of life to be found on Jupiters moons Europa or Callisto !!...Oh my !!.....That will be amazing !!...even if it's a bacteria type small thingy !!

.....LOL....what will people do or say when that day happens ?

[RD]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drake_equation

[ukmicky]

At present and at the risk of sounding  arrogant  as their is no evidence what-so-ever of any other form of life be it plant or animal in the universe other than that on earth i say alone.

[syhprum]

I am pretty certain that living organisms both locally evolved and spread by meteorites will be found on other bodies in the Solar system.
I think it is bizarre arrogance to assume that in the vastness of the universe we are the only inhabited planet and that any other life forms are 'primitive'.

[ukmicky]

Donna

There are two things you need to look at which may help you make your mind up.

Firstly the

Drake equation  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drake_equation

and then

Fermi's paradox  http://forgetomori.com/2007/ufos/fermi-believed-in-aliens-what-a-paradox/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_paradox

[Soul Surfer]

I agree that the probability of life on other planets in other solar systems must be very high but the probability of technological civilisations may be low because they are very likely to destroy themselves with overpopulation and collapse back to a more basic society as we are busy doing at the moment.

This is probably thre main reason why the galaxy is not full of aliens  although the design and succesful completion of a "Space Ark" that is totally self sufficient for an indefinate period is very complex and requires vast resources

I think that the probability that the universe has been "seeded" with organic chemicals that promote the evolution of life is high and that life could well have been transferred between planets in this solar system by impacts

I expect that the probability of finding an advanced technological civilisation close enough to communicate with is quite low although there is a significant possibility of us hearing or sending a message to other intelligent life.