4 ms·
AFAIK the sun is brighter than about 90% of stars in the Milky Way. We're on the larger and faster burning side, as stars go. So there will be many stars left
by Jweb_Guru 5y ago
AFAIK the sun is brighter than about 90% of stars in the Milky Way. We're on the larger and faster burning side, as stars go. So there will be many stars left after the sun dies. Whether you consider this to mean that saying we're about halfway through the lifetime of sunlike stars sidesteps the question depends on whether you believe that complex, energy-intensive, intelligent life is equally viable on planets orbiting red dwarfs.
- glenstein 5y agoOne person's idea of a "side step" is another person's "refraining from making assumptions" but point noted. For me, in my position of refraining from associating life with particular types stars, I at least feel a bit more reassurance to think of us as in the company of stars writ large, by which measure we're not so close to the end of the cosmic span of time. That said, I think sun-like stars is a perfectly legitimate measure to put alongside the others when casting about for intuitive ways of assessing where we stand on a cosmic timeline.