My Thoughts of "Life in Other Planets or Solar System"

[Piko]

When we talk about the Extra Terrestrial Life, we talk about possibilities of the presence of life. We breathe Oxygen. But how did the Dinosaurus lived and why couldn't they match with the changing environment and climate?

Aren't there any other chemical elements out there in other Planets by which the Living beings can live---some other WAYS of LIVING out there.

I think that they(the living beings in other planets) breathe(IF "they breathe") some other gases which supports life.

[antoniseb]

Hi Piko,

Welcome to the BAUT forum.

We do have a section of the forum that deals with (among other things) the possibilities of life in other environments.

[Kaptain K]

When we talk about the Extra Terrestrial Life, we talk about possibilities of the presence of life. We breathe Oxygen. But how did the Dinosaurus lived and why couldn't they match with the changing environment and climate?

It is now thought that the dinosaurs died out when a big (10 Km) asteroid slammed into what is now the Yucatan peninsula.

Aren't there any other chemical elements out there in other Planets by which the Living beings can live---some other WAYS of LIVING out there.

I think that they(the living beings in other planets) breathe(IF "they breathe") some other gases which supports life.

Not really. Oxygen is unique in that although it is a strong oxidiser , water (H2O) is neutral (neither acid or base). Although science fiction has posited chlorine breathing life forms, I don't see how it could work. Chlorine and flourine are also good oxidisers, but HF and HCl are strong acids and very corrosive.

[Saluki]

Plants metabolize carbon dioxide, but IIRC they do need O₂ during the early phases of growth.

There are also anaerobic bacteria.

[AK]

but HF and HCl are strong acids and very corrosive.

HF is a weak acid, actually. (Although it has one very nifty property: it eats glass.)

Oxygen is special because it has by far the most energy available as a terminal electron acceptor. (Next on the list of other potential redox couples is, IIRC, nitrate, with a much smaller yield.) There are biomechanical constraints associated with being a cellular life form, and without oxygen it seems very unlikely to be able to have large, multicellular creatures like metazoans under any conditions.

[zenbudda]

if my memory serves me correctly, i read an article on the possibility of silicon based life forms somewhere out there.

[pranab]

pranab
When we consider that life created on other planets based on carbonHydrogen, posphate sulphate based DNA that constitute Aminoacids like purine and pyrimidine nucleotides and ladder sugar(De-oxyribose] and a double helix like that of our planet then the basic reqirments are water, Oxygen, nitrogen and in a cell to supply energy ieATP require Kreb's cycle and need Oxygen,
HoweverThere are also micro organisms which are purely anerobic one like Clostidia Welchi
Silicon based DNA is possible. But will it be self replicating? _ I doubt
DR. Pranab Kr Bhattacharya
MR Rupak Bhattacharya MrRitwik Bhattacharya
www.unipathos.com

[Piko]

All the elements of the universe is NOT still discovered. ETs can be living by the help of other elements and other techniques of metabolism. Acid, bases and neutral compounds do not matter here. What matters is that the ET can live by some other ways.

You want me to specify the OTHER TECHNIQUES and OTHER ELEMENTS which supports life. well, that is the unknown...can anyone suggest it?

[Swift]

All the elements of the universe is NOT still discovered. ETs can be living by the help of other elements and other techniques of metabolism. Acid, bases and neutral compounds do not matter here. What matters is that the ET can live by some other ways.

You want me to specify the OTHER TECHNIQUES and OTHER ELEMENTS which supports life. well, that is the unknown...can anyone suggest it?

I suspect that we know just about all the elements in the Universe and the few trans-uranium ones to be discovered have nothing to do with life. It is possible that there is unique chemistry involving the elements we already know that supports life. For example, the life cycles involving hydrothermal vents were only discovered in the last decade or so. But the possible existence of other life doesn't prove that it exists.

[GOURDHEAD]

It seems that the "CHON" based molecules that self organize into living beings have an edge even before their self organization produces life. Their valence bonding strengths relative to that of other elements' permutations and combinations have an advantage that favor their emergence and endurance as leaders in the self organization race both pre-biologically and biologically. So before the emergence of technically competent critters, the nonCHON critters (if at all possible) are decidedly disadvantaged. After the emergence of technically competent critters, their very technical competence, powered in some part by their well developed curiosity, may compel them to design and develop AI-type critters that can safely operate over much wider extremes of temperature and pressure than can the CHON based critters. Some of these AI types may have already been loosed in the universe. Let's hope they are reasonably respectful of what we hope to maintain as our inaleinable rights.

[ToSeek]

Thread moved from "Astronomy" to "Life in Space."