So, I was thinking about extrasolar planets, and I just wanted to toss some thoughts out there.

I think it is a safe bet that for every star there can be only one planet that is as habitable to us as Earth is. One planet that, should we be living on today, we would be able to survive in. It seems to me that we don’t typically find large bodies in orbit equidistant from any one star. Any particles in a given distance around a star are more likely to form into a single congealed mass before forming two atmosphere-supporting satellites.

This star may be unlike our own, in mass and output, depending on its “age”. Therefore, the distance of this habitable planet from its sun may be surprisingly small or large, which may affect its orbital period or mass, and, in turn, gravity. Despite these abnormalities, the planet could support Earth-life today.

The discover of extremeophiles demonstrates that very funky versions of life can exist in surprising forms under stressful conditions. It is possible that life exists on extrasolar planets that we could not live on today. Likely, any alien life that is found on a planet not resembling Earth’s conditions will be as different from us as an extremeophile; not a life form that can be interacted with or learned from as movies sometimes try to demonstrate.

I do not believe that we will be able to “terraform” planets the way science fiction movies may make it out to be. I believe that with enough power we may be able to create contained environments on an extrasolar planet. For example, on Mars we can likely climate control and atmosphere-support any number of interiors so long as there is power for it. The idea of walking around on the surface of Mars with blue skies and oceans is just not possible without being able to capture and supply more energy from the sun than is received normally.

Aliens? Intelligent life? Sure, thats possible. Will we ever come in contact with Aleins? I doubt it. I mean, if we ever go interstellar, that means that we have made it and will continue to survive. But that poses some new problems …

Interstellar travel is also pretty tricky. I believe that in the near future we will have “intersolar” travel in reasonable amounts of time; “Falling” towards a planet for half the trip and then braking the second half can get you somewhere like Mars pretty fast. But seriously, once you start traveling outside of our solar system you start facing some serious problems with relativity and the like. I mean, it would just be impossible to hold any sort of interstellar relationship.

There literally are limits.

I mean, unless we can spin those quarks.

I guess what I am trying to say, is next time you are watching Firefly and people are walking around planets in their cowboy hats and are surrounded by trees at atmosphere like NBD … its probably not going to happen like that.