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Humanity will have no choice but to try to escape the solar system at some point. If it makes you feel better about it, think of humans as natives of this galax
by rho4 3y ago
Humanity will have no choice but to try to escape the solar system at some point. If it makes you feel better about it, think of humans as natives of this galaxy.
- bayesian_horse 3y agoBy the time we CAN send Human beings on missions leaving the solar system, the definition of "Human being" will have changed beyond recognition.
- rho4 3y agoAgreed.
- shrimp_emoji 3y agoI sure hope so.
- jqpabc123 3y agoYes, in a few billion years all life on earth will be extinguished by the sun. In the shorter term, humans can either *choose* to live in a more sustainable manner in this solar system or the choice can be forced upon them. Personal judgment --- resources would be much better spent on sustainability rather than escape at this point in time.
- shrimp_emoji 3y agoActually, in about 500 million, there won't be enough CO2 left for photosynthesis[0]. The shelf life of complex life on Earth is probably closer the end than to the beginning. Still a lot of time left from our perspective, but we have to save ourselves -- and the legacy of complex life on Earth -- sometime. 0: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_far_future https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_far_future Expand "Lists" and search for "photosynthesis".
- taylodl 3y agoAnd go where? All the stars we can see with the naked eye are going to be dying around the same time as our sun. And we won't ever be able to travel to them, let alone beyond. Things will improve here on Earth once we realize we're stuck in this solar system. Forever.
- shrimp_emoji 3y ago3/4 of stars are red dwarfs which can last for *trillions* of years. Our Sun is in the 1/4 that lasts for mere billions. I don't think this bleak defeatism is warranted at all. It feels like a projection of hopelessness about local affairs. Surface-wise, planets are actually non-ideal. Habitats are where it's at, baby. (E.g., O'Neill cylinders or, more fancifully, ringworlds.) But we probably can't ever build those cuz we suck! T_T Waaaah!!