Exoplanets and the search for life in the universe - with Chris Impey
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 พ.ค. 2024
- Exoplanets are planets that orbit around a star, like our own Earth. These planets could be hiding life somewhere out in the universe - what does that mean for our world?
Watch the Q&A here: • Q&A: Exoplanets and th...
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00:00 Intro - the search for life in the universe
04:20 How do we define life?
11:39 What about artificial intelligence and robot life?
14:51 Is there life on Mars, or other planets near us?
21:10 Searching for exoplanets
23:51 Are any exoplanets habitable by life?
27:56 What would it like on other planets?
31:04 How many habitable worlds might there be?
32:52 Nomad planets sailing through space
35:34 How would we find life on other planets?
39:28 Are we alone in the universe?
47:28 The analogy between technology and biology development
49:02 Imagining an Earth-like planet
There are over 5000 confirmed exoplanets and scientists believe the James Webb Space Telescope will discover many more. So as our planet faces increasing environmental challenges, this talk will explore the question: Could space be our salvation?
Chris takes us on a tour of the science behind this exciting frontier, from the basics of habitability to the role of private industry in space exploration, offering a glimpse into a future that's both exciting and uncertain.
This talk was recorded at the Ri on the 10 June 2023
Chris Impey is a University Distinguished Professor of Astronomy at the University of Arizona. He has over 220 refereed publications on observational cosmology, galaxies, and quasars, and his research has been supported by $20 million in NASA and NSF grants. He has won eleven teaching awards and has taught four online classes with over 370,000 enrolled and 6 million minutes of video lectures watched. Chris Impey is a past Vice President of the American Astronomical Society, and he has won its career Education Prize. He has written 100 popular articles on cosmology, astrobiology and education, two textbooks, a novel, and nine popular science books: 'The Living Cosmos', 'How It Ends', 'Talking About Life', 'How It Began', 'Dreams of Other Worlds', 'Humble Before the Void', 'Beyond: The Future of Space Travel', 'Einstein’s Monsters: The Life and Times of Black Holes', and 'Worlds Without End: Exoplanets' and 'Habitability and the Future of Humanity'.
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Perhaps one of the most persuasive discussions of the existence of life elsewhere I have heard.
Chrise impey talks are great. Just love the way he talks about science. Thanks for sharing.
Chris's black hole lecture at R.I was incredible. This should be just as fun. Also, expect Chris to say extraordinary and amazing at least twice ❤
That was brilliant thank you
Concise, explicit, informative, eloquent, and insightful in every minute of the lecture.
I like and admired his deconstruction of human exceptionalism. This is a deep and pernicious view that is becoming deep in some aspects of society.
Subtle, insightful with excellent perspective.
Excellent talk as usual with Chris Impey
This is how you give a talk.
At 33:45 he says, "They [nomad planets] do exist." At 35:27 he says, "We've not found any nomad planets."
This presentation is so well done. I wonder who did all the data analysis and graphs - it's so succinct and clear.
Chris Impey rules!
Soros rules 😊
Wow! How did your kind get here!@@whirledpeas3477
Someone needs to improve upon the Drake Equation by inserting a variable that takes into account deep time.
So nice of you to admit you are going into a religious endeavor in the very first minute of the talk. I appreciate that transparency.
I think there is a blueprint for life embedded in the fabric of the universe that demands life at every opportunity there must be billions of exoplanets in the cosmos orbiting their parent star in the comfort zone for life. And all the ingredients that give rise to life on earth are abundant everywhere in the universe
I love Chris Impey! What a great presentation. It was over much too soon. Now I have to re-watch his other talks, which were equally great!
Chris Impey is one of the best popular science orators going. He’s had some fantastic lectures on this subject (some for UA that are sadly no longer available).
Is there a theoretical limit to how powerful a telescope you could make?
Harness element 115, and produce element 116. It is possible, without gravitational and elemental effect. Have amplifiers cancel any reaction with any matter. Excellent.
Perfect
It's in the frequency, then amplified.
Fact remains that some of the tests done by the Viking landers on Mars tested positive on organic material in the soil, but because not all tests came out positive we decided to dismiss the results as a fluke. We can only wonder why those same tests have never been repeated by one of the later missions ?
I wouldn't be surprised at all if life is everywhere around us, although maybe not intelligent life of course.
The 'Labelled Release' experiment on the Viking landers definitely returned a mixed bag of results.
I tend to think it was 'good science' for the mission scientists to conclude a non-finding of signs of life based on those results, but you're right that further tests are warranted - although a better bet might be subsurface sampling, perhaps even within the rocks of one of the so-called 'skylight' caves where any living material might be afforded protection from the harsh ultraviolet radiation. This would be especially promising for protected areas at the very lowest of Martian elevations; because the scientists tell us that in those regions the atmospheric pressure is high enough for liquid water to avoid sublimation, providing day-time temperatures rise high enough....
"thank you for uploading these videos. Even if I'm having a hard night, I just put a relaxing astronomy video on and listen. It always makes my nights go much easier.
Thank you!!!"
Thank you, enjoyed this lecture and cannot wait to see the results from the new telescopes in the future. JWST has already started to show some amazing results and it will only get better as our technology improves.
Phosphorous is extremely rare in the universe and is essential for carbon-based Earth life.
0:12: 🌌 The speaker is going to talk about the search for exoplanets and life in the universe, continuing the Copernican revolution.
5:49: 💡 The speaker discusses the prevalence of microbes in the universe and the uncertainty surrounding the existence and characteristics of higher levels of life intelligence.
11:00: 🐙 The speaker discusses the intelligence and complexity of octopuses, highlighting their potential as alien-like creatures on Earth.
17:42: 🌍 There are potential signs of life in rocks from Mars, and there are also possibilities of life in the oceans of Europa and Enceladus.
23:15: 🌍 Earth is ten times smaller than Jupiter and the transit method has been successful in finding thousands of exoplanets.
29:04: 🌌 There are billions of habitable worlds in the Milky Way galaxy.
35:17: 🌍 The search for exoplanets and signs of life in the universe is an ongoing field of study with many exciting possibilities.
40:08: 🌌 There could potentially be a million technological intelligent civilizations in the galaxy, but it is also possible that we are the only one.
45:07: 🌌 Enrico Fermi's question about the existence of intelligent life in the universe and the anticipation of finding it.
Recap by Tammy AI
WOW! What an amazingly insightful lecture. It open up so many questions, and thought trains. Please, invite Chris Impey back for more in this extraordinary subject.
one of, if not the best, presenter and speaker on this channel
this dude is great
Great lecture!
Breaking out of our usual naval gazing state of being is always too much of a stretch of the imagination for many, myself included, but the balance in Chris’ framing of the key questions in this endeavour was just right I found.
Still, we are so insignificant and know so very little and yet we never seem to want to stop our self-aggrandising ways
"Naval gazing"? Are you seeing ships? ;-)
I wouldn't go to the new habitable planet if there's no Royal Institution office in it.
you had me at bucky..;-)..
We can't go to these planets with ESI > Earth's. But life can go there. It doesn't travel from one planet to another as it takes too long and the traveler can't survive that long without an energy source. Life appears and evolves in parallel at many different locations and so by whatever force initiates life, it essentially "travels" to other places. If we want to theorize actual traveling life, planets formed in star systems earlier than 4 Billion years ago could be supporting life that is already physically traveling, say such as bacteria that can survive in a dormant form not requiring energy. They could randomly stick to bodies on the way, some of which would be sufficiently hospitable as to support the evolution of that bacteria. Just some thoughts.
Wonderful talk. Q&A is worth watching too.
Excellent presentation!!
I am with David Brin when it comes down to extra-terrestrial exploration: We are limited to transfering information, which will take ages to send and receive, unless 'we' or 'them' are able to connect us via communication devices which are quantum-entangled. Question: How long would it take us to safely transfer such device (which probably would travel for ~100 years(?) through space and could be harmed by rough conditions, since space seems to be far more radiated than within the solar system)? Anyways: 'Stop_Sc_Trollogy?'
great lecture..learned alot.thanks.
Maybe life has been and gone on other worlds? In the timeline of our planet, we have only been around for what? Say 1 second. But then. What if we are the first?
The universe is teaming of life. The problem is the intelegent life like us could be very rare 🎉
29:26 - I'm pretty sure "analojously" isn't a word, Chris.
Oh, you're just injealously inclined that you don't have the scientific stature to make new words that receive immediate validational acceptance.
Love it ❤
wheres the QNA
Superb
I see the CBC logo.
Eh? I don't get it. Was something cut from that end bit about something interesting happening on an earth-like planet?
I would argue that biological life, if it exists elsewhere, is carbon based similar to life on earth. I believe that for two reasons: 1. The elements for life, as we know it, are abundant in the universe. 2. The evolution of life on earth began in the universe billions of years ago with with formation of planets and the elements that eventually resulted in life on earth.
I am not saying that life on earth is special (though it could still be). What I am saying is, we are here because that's what the universe came up with through countless rolls of the dice, if you will. We were the solution that worked for the Universe. If life exists elsewhere, I expect it to be similar to life on earth.
Wonderful presentation 😚
Informative Thank you
I've watched many of these You Tubes. I'm not a physicist! I always ask myself the same question, so I guess I'll ask it here ...
Because of the speed of light, the further we look away from Earth, the further we look back in time. The ultimate being the cosmic background radiation.
So surely, all this talk can summise is that there are many, many worlds out there that had the capacity for life, millions and millions of years ago? Given the average age of a solar civilisation, 99% of every habitable world we can "see" will have become extinct "by now".
Tell me I'm wrong? (Please 😂)
So what .... (Part 2)...
Surely we should be looking for worlds that exhibit what Earth had 1 billion years ago. Then, when we're able to travel there, that world may have matured to a 2.0 contender.
Having yourself as a friend is rare and precious. I admire you
In another lecture, it was said that super Earths have too large and violent of storms, ie Jupiter, for life to survive.
Thought this was sponsored by CBC or something when the video started...
That was great. Super interesting.
Hello. Update: K2-18b has life.
In the vast cosmic dance, a quest unfolds,
Chris Impey’s voice, a story he molds.
Exoplanets, a celestial trance,
In the search for life, let’s take a glance.
Beyond our skies, where planets hide,
Exoplanets in a galactic ride.
In the realms where stars dance and whirl,
The search for life, an enigmatic swirl.
In distant orbits, these planets they roam,
Their atmospheres a distant home.
In cosmic silence, they orbit their sun,
A quest for life, just begun.
In the Goldilocks zone, that perfect space,
The conditions for life to embrace.
Not too hot, not too cold,
A haven where life could unfold.
Chris Impey’s insight, a guiding ray,
Through telescopes, a celestial display.
Seeking signs that may reveal,
Life’s essence, a cosmic seal.
The spectrums they analyze, the wavelengths they scan,
For traces of life, a cosmic plan.
In gases and elements that might decree,
The presence of life in galaxies free.
The search for life, a probing dive,
Through science and wonder, they strive.
Chris Impey's vision, a guiding hand,
In the search for life across the cosmic span.
In the tapestry of stars so grand,
Exoplanets in celestial command.
A revealing quest, a journey profound,
In the search for life, a universe unbound.
Sounds familiar 🤔
From what we know of life's history on earth (granted, an n of 1), I would not be surprised if life turns out to be common, but complex life fairly rare, and intelligence even rarer. Life evolved on earth pretty much as soon as it was somewhat habitable (liquid water, but toxic atmosphere, extreme temperatures, and frequent asteroid impacts), but the life stayed simple and single celled for literally most of the history of earth. Even after more complex life arose, beings intelligent enough to create complex technology only very recently evolved. Yes whales and ravens are smart, but nowhere near smart enough to build a space probe or create AI.
Earth formed 4.5 billion years ago, single celled life evolved 3.7 - 4.2 billion years ago, multicellular life evolved 1 billion years ago, animals 600 million years ago, genus homo 2 million years ago.
I would think that super earths could be a problem for animal life given the much higher gravity. For cellular life, my guess would be less of an issue.
Agreed.
Also, above a certain mass, a Super-Earth civilisation may find itself unable to break free of its own gravity well to explore beyond; simply of the Rocket Equation.
They would need ever more propellant to launch tiny masses and if the gravity well is deep enough, the well will exceed even the theoretical maximum force that could be provided by chemical rocketry.
Might this confine a society forever to their home planet or might it simply drive their thinkers to skip chemical propulsion altogether in favour of nuclear fusion or even more exotic solution, such as matter-antimatter drives?
Interesting thoughts.
Ps: would life on an Ocean world ever become aware of the Universe? What if such life formed on a world encircled with a 'ceiling' of ice?
Why not make satellites or space stations that can do the analyses you want in outer space?
we are special theres no rule that says this is the only way this level of comprehension can exist in this form. its narrow minded to assume we are alone. most is there to back the beliefs not actual science.
I disagree that it's narrow-minded to assume we are alone. It depends entirely on how likely abiogenesis is. If it is sufficiently unlikely, it will matter not a bit how many planets and attempts are made, we would be the sole success.
I don't happen to think this is the case, but equally I don't think the sheer scale of the Universe will rescue us from truly adverse odds
@@DanielVerberne greatest thing ever. you can believe or think what ever you want. but fact are rarely the same for the masses. the few figure things out not the masses. a sole success for whom? a god. your creator isn't sentient. no magic finger or pure race or correct belief. no attempts where made only frequency in resonance. you should learn of the book called the true word. no rule that states this isn't the only for this level of consciousness can have....
@@michaelmyrick6973 I can't understand what you're trying to say, unfortunately. Cheers.
@@DanielVerberne the term abiogenesis is a theory not theorem. two different things. one is a horrible idea lol the other sound facts logic and wisdom. you didn't evolve sir. you share DNA with an octopus as well as a monkey and pig and every other life form on earth. many things are known universally because that's the only form that level of consciousness can take.
There are no "CDs from the 70s"!
+1
Lol. I had to relisten. I swear he said, "and clearly somethings gone wrong." I did laugh out loud. Unfortunately his words were more applicable, "somethings going on."
41:00 ... For someone who references Carl Sagan so much, he should really know that is the Pioneer 10/11 plaque. :(
Life is difficult. Try to adapt.
@@whirledpeas3477 I tried, but the world didn't turn into what I wanted, so, I gave up. Now, I spend my time criticising people for making trivial mistakes ... like my parents.
Luv the efforts. Gatekeeping needs to cease across all fields. It has stymied advancements and absolutely undermined all trust in the sciences quite recently. . .
Well... I BELIEVE...
(I'm not math expert or scientist... Just a couch potato with life long interest in where humanity came from and where humanity is going...)...
... That there are worlds out there in vastness of universe with life. But...with all the "great filters" that coukd happen...and all the "just perfect" situations and conditions that need happen... That just ordinary basic microbial life may be rare. And "intelligent" life exceptionally rare.
We could conquer our whole galaxy...and all the close by neighboring galaxies...and never find so much as a microbe.
That doesnt mean life isnt out there... Its just that universe is SO F***ING BIG!!! That numerous intelligent lifeforms could evolve... Conquer their galaxies and neighboring galaxies.... AND STILL NEVER EVEN COME CLOSE TO CONTACT OR COMMUNICATION OR INTERACTION OF ANY KIND with each other.
Just saying.
But until we have confirmation... We dont know. And I really dislike people that pretend to know. We'll know when we know ..if ever...and not sooner.
Maybe AI is the "normal" and most common intelligence in the universe. Semi-intelligent, biological lifeforms like humans are just an important transition, an enabler ......
That is very hard to think about. It's kind of like trying to think about my own for-certain coming death. Hard to think about this world without me in it. Hard to think about a world in which machines are the heirs of intelligent biological life and replace intelligent biological life. What would be the purpose of these intelligent machines? They might well have similar functions - procreation, maintaining/enhancing their existence, networking - but what about heart and soul? Desires, dreams, attachments, love, compassion, conflict, comedy, tragedy, art? The kind of things that Commander Data wondered about and even seemed to envy, all the while seeming more "human" than anyone around him.
Maybe it's like imagining some ancient Neanderthal grandma thinking and dreaming about me at my computer. How could she grasp what moves me here in 2023? Still less could she grasp a computer being me.
They'd have the same purpose as the rest of us. To increase entropy in the universe. Like our Star forefathers and our Robo children, we are all destined to become Iron, in the end.
@@Vexas345 true
There's life everywhere in the vacuum. I believe that life will appear whenever conditions are favorable. In each galacty there will be life, its the filters that are the real factor for intelligence. Our planet has had so many extinction events and yet life finds a way. And i believe this same finding a way will occur across the entire vacuum. If the goal of the vacuum is to get back to equivalence then we are just apart of the system. Its exciting stuff science and it will be up to you, the young brilliant minds coming up that will determine where this civilization goes. Once we get the world to start working as 1 civilization working towards 1 goal, we will do great things. Lets stop the wars and use that money to get our arses into the great vacuum. Our future is 6 miles above us and the times now. Peace ✌️ from Canada, eh.
The search for life only looks at our galaxy.
Well said!!!
There are more planets in our own solar systems with robots than humans....
Extraterrestrial life will not be silicon. Big book of reasons why life is carbon based. 👍
if a whale can communicate with another whale several thousand of km away why can't a planet have consciousness and we are just missing at points in time of how that living planet is trying or is sending a single to another living planet. my point is if a plant does have consciousness then to find other living planets we need to observe in detail our own planet.
Read Stephen Meyers book "Return to the God Hypothesis" then let's chat. God certainly has life all over His infinite creations. The interesting thing to me is that even though we are maybe not all that unique, life certainly is precious, and humanity, with all it's flaws, sure can do amazing things.
Okay anyone pouting like the of alternate universes it's a fake. I don't care what his credentials are. I will never forget when I was in physics in college, our professor Dr. Cole asked if anyone had any questions on the topic which was in electromagnetism and one student raised his hand and asked him if there are any other universes. Dr. Cole mentioned to the student that was off-topic but he would answer the question anyway and that the answer is no. The students got very upset and asked how he could possibly know that. Dr. Cole gave a very simple reply: if in principle regardless of current technology but if in principle such a universe could never be detected then it did not exist. If in principle it was detectable then it is in our universe. There are no alternate universes and the the concept of the bulk has been dismissed by the results the Large Hadron Collider which could not find any gravity leakage. There is no bulk and there is no extra universes. Superstring theory is garbage as is m-theory.
of course were special. there is no kind of life on earth besides humans that can understand the difference between thunder and lightning.
Excellent lecture but here is the hard truths of astrobiology:
1. There are no such thing as "Habitable planets" as that is an imaginary speculative set and always shall be.
2. The Earth is habitable exclusively because it is alive and for no other reason. This would be a chicken vs. Egg paradox except for the Universe there are no chickens and no eggs.
3. Astrobiology loves large numbers but there is a mathematical antidote to large numbers: zero.
4. Drake's equation has been solved, scientifically, because one of the factors in Drake's equation is literally and incontrovertibly zero.
5. Abiogenesis is literally impossible. The Universe is sterile. There is nothing out there.
6. If you wonder how life might exist on the Earth when the Universe is sterile this right here is the greatest mystery of science and it won't ever be solved.
7. About technological growth of technology over 50,000 years from stone tool to cellphone, we also know what the next 50,000 years of technological growth leads to: the extinction of humankind. No technology. Not even stone tools.
8. Interstellar communication is impossible. Sorry SETI!
9. There is no such thing as a biosignature: sorry astrobiologists!
10. While science fiction imagines life taking many forms the unpleasant reality of biochemistry is that life can take one, and only one, form. What you see is all that exist.
Why are you so overconfident on what you are saying?? Are you kid??
1 in 5 planets habitable?? HAHAHAHAAHAHA!
Killing "Life" on earth And looking for life in space!
Common sense ?
so many lies.....
why do you think that
Old recycled talk, nothing new or worthy this gathering...
Lots of tired cliches in the intro. Many of them not even right.
So much religion and so little actual science...
K2-18b is believed to be a water world or hycent planet