During a sudden turn of events, Elon musk the manchild CEO of Tesla, and SpaceX announced that there is no other form of life in our Solar System. He conceded there may still be a chance that it’s hiding elsewhere in our system, responding to a 3-year-old’s mail Even if it has little resemblance to the type we’re accustomed to. “Maybe under the ice of Europa or extremophile bacteria below the surface of Mars,” Musk added.
Elon Musk also pointed the boy to the Wikipedia entry for the Drake equation. In short, the equation attempts to estimate the number of extraterrestrial civilizations in our galaxy. First formulated by Frank Drake in 1961, the equation requires you to put in variables, of which estimates vary widely. But it did become a road map of what we still needed to figure out before we can say once and for all if we are alone in our galaxy.
Life in Our Solar System
On the other hand, the researchers on earth are very hopeful to find life on other planets of our Solar System. Especially the Xenobiologists who have a few ideas for where to look for life in our system. As Musk points out, icy moons such as Saturn’s moon Enceladus or Jupiter’s moon Europa could be capable of harboring life in deep subsurface oceans. Protected from space radiation and other hostile conditions by a thick layer of ice.
Scientists have found out that the conditions there are quite favorable to sustain life. They’ve also found organic chemicals such as precursors of amino acids which are the building blocks of life in plumes. That burst from Enceladus’ surface. Researchers have also concluded that Europa’s oceans could have a similar chemical composition to Earth’s saltwater, making it more hospitable than we initially thought.
“If there is something on Mars, it’s likely to be very small — bacteria. But I think we’ve got a better chance of having slightly higher forms of life on Europa. Perhaps similar to the intelligence of an octopus,” said Monica Grady, the chancellor at Liverpool Hope University in the UK, in a contentious statement back in February.
Water on Mars
We all know how close Mars is to Elon Musk’s heart. It is speculated for a long time about life on Mars. Everyone is thinking about Liquid water is wide to have existed on Mars in the past. And now as low-volume liquid brines in shallow Martian soil can occasionally be found. Also, the many rovers which were sent to Mars have found out that organic compound is indeed present on the surface of Mars.
And hence there is a higher chance of life being present there. The Viking lander’s Martian soil sample let off radioactive carbon dioxide when mixed with a reagent. A sign of the existence of microorganisms to former NASA scientist Gilbert Levin. Although these findings are highly controversial and there is no solid proof of this.
Life on Venus
Anyway, scientists were even surprised. When they discovered phosphine on the surface of Venus. If phosphine is found on a planet as harsh as Venus. Then we might say that life is also possible on other more habitual planets in the Solar System. Because Phosphine is an organic compound. Of course, this is too early to say but Musk’s prophecy has started dwindling for sure.
Another solid evidence came very recently during Nasa’s curiosity rover’s mission. Schulze-Makuch and his team identified “thiophenes” in readings collected by NASA’s Curiosity rover. Special compounds found in coal, crude oil, and white truffles back on Earth – a discovery consistent with early life on Mars. “As Carl Sagan said ‘extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence,’” Washington State University astrobiologist Dirk Schulze-Makuch said in a March statement. “I think the proof will require that we send people there. And an astronaut looks through a microscope and sees a moving microbe,” he added.
Life in Our Solar System: Conclusion
Whether or not there is life on other planets of our Solar system is a big ‘if’. Before coming to a definite conclusion, we have to keep in mind all the evidence that has been put up before us. Mankind has always tried to push it’s boundaries and will continue to do so. Elon Musk is a prime supporter of Humans inhabiting the red planet. He might have said that there is no life in our Solar System other than on Earth. But it won’t hurt if we find some more living creatures on other planets.
Also, the great astrophysicist Late Dr. Stephen Hawking mentioned that whether or not there is life on other planets, the presence of intelligence is quite unlikely. But we should never stop looking, who knows what awaits us? NASA is doing thorough research on finding life on Mars and even on other planets (still, Mars appears to be more promising). And we hope that all this hard work bears fruit soon.
