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I understand, but that's a synthetic benchmark. We actually have no idea why Earth has life and other planets don't and similarity to Earth may not be a big fac

I understand, but that's a synthetic benchmark. We actually have no idea why Earth has life and other planets don't and similarity to Earth may not be a big factor (see theories on life in Europa's seas for example or non-carbon based life). I just feel everyone gets excited over nothing solely because its extra-solar. Our own solar system is fairly diverse. If life was common, we'd probably be seeing more of it here.

ericson578 11y ago
maybe life is common enough, but doesn't typically overlap in time. Maybe life on mars or venus died out a billion years ago. We'll have a better picture when we study our solar system in more detail. Maybe 100 years? I agree that speculation this early in the game isn't enough to get excited over.