People are becoming increasingly concerned as the planet heats up and climate change worsens. What is our backup strategy if things do not improve? Could we just quit Earth and start again somewhere else? The idea of leaving Earth and settling on another planet is not new. It’s similar to a movie plot, but it could also be more than that.
Why Earth is Perfect for Humans to Live?
Earth is in a special place called the Goldilocks zone. It indicates it’s at the perfect distance from the Sun for water to remain liquid. This is critical because water played a role in the origin of life on Earth billions of years ago. It also helps all living things survive, from microscopic critters to large animals.
Another advantage of Earth’s distance from the Sun is that it is neither too hot nor too cold. It’s just warm enough without being overly toasty. The air around our planet does a big job too. It traps the warmth from the Sun, making sure it doesn’t get too chilly for living things. Also, the Earth’s strong magnetic field protects humans from the Sun’s harmful radiation.
So, basically, Earth is the best home ever because it provides everything life requires, such as water, air, and the perfect temperature. That is why it is distinct from the other planets in our Solar System.
Are There Any Planets Like Earth?
In the huge space above us, where much remains unknown, could there be another planet like Earth, full of its own living beings?
Scientists are trying to find out, and they’ve discovered a few spots that appear to be very similar to Earth, including Gliese 667 Cc, Kepler-69c, Trappist-1e, Proxima Centauri b, and Kepler-452b. Kepler-452b, sometimes known as Earth 2.0, is the most Earth-like of them all. It is located at an area near its star where the conditions are ideal, similar to Goldilocks’ porridge, and its year lasts 385 days.
However, we still don’t know whether there are any living beings there. Even if we wanted to go to Kepler-452b, we couldn’t. It’s a long way away, some 1,800 light years, and even in a super-fast spaceship traveling at 36,661 miles/hour (59,000 kilometers/hour), it would take about 30 million years to arrive.
Will People Ever Live on Other Planets?
To answer this question, let’s start with our own planet. Earth is unique; from Mercury to Neptune, there is no place like it. But when we look at other planets in our solar system, like Mercury, Venus, and even Neptune, we realize they’re not suitable for living. They’re just not right for any life forms, including humans.
Even when we look beyond our solar system at other planets orbiting distant stars, called exoplanets, we haven’t had much luck finding a new home. Scientists have yet to find a planet that is ideal for humanity. Even if they discover one, the journey will be extremely difficult.
According to Michel Mayor, Swiss astrophysicist and professor who won a Nobel Prize for studying space, these exoplanets are simply too far away. Until we figure out how to travel such long distances, it’s unlikely that we’ll find a new planet to call home.
Can People Survive on Mars?
People cannot survive on Mars by themselves. It’s far too cold, with temperatures as low as -243 degrees Fahrenheit (-153 degrees Celsius). This happens because Mars has a thin atmosphere that can’t trap heat from the Sun like Earth does.
But it isn’t the only issue. Mars has deadly soil and a lesser gravity than Earth. Living there would also subject them to dangerous radiation. Another issue is water. Due to the thin atmosphere, there is no liquid water on the surface. There is some water, but most of it is frozen into ice.
To survive on Mars, we need to make a suitable environment using technology. We’d have to build artificial human settlements with advanced systems to keep pressure, like spacesuits.
Earth is the best place for humans. Everything we need to live well, like water, oxygen, and warmth, is here, supporting many different kinds of life. No other planet in our solar system has these features. So, will humans ever survive on another planet?
Living on Mars will need a lot of work and really advanced technology, but we’ll probably set up some kind of base there.
But will we all move to another planet? Not really – at least not until we figure out how to travel faster than light!
References
- University of California – https://news.ucsb.edu/ – The Planetary Sweet Spot
- Live Science – https://www.livescience.com/ – Humans Will Never Live on an Exoplanet, Nobel Laureate Says. Here’s Why.
- Space – https://www.space.com/ – The 10 most Earth-like exoplanets
- Wikipedia – Climate of Mars
