AStronomy Discoveries - Research Paper Example

Scientists like Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking have hypothesized that it would be improbable for life not to exist somewhere other than the earth relying on the vast size and consistent physical laws of the observable Universe (Steiger and White, 3-4). The existence of life on the earth is based mainly on the biochemical reactions and bonds of 6 elements, namely, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorous and sulphur. The distance of earth from its star and its atmospheric conditions, and most importantly, the presence of water make the ‘blue-planet’ inhabitable (Sol Company, Inc).

Presence of a liquid, though not water, is basal for life to sustain wherever on the universe, that’s what our scientists have figured out. Complex chemical reactions that form the foundation of life require some liquid to take place. But, liquid state is one of the rarest on the universe, because, holding a liquid in space is improbable in vacuum. In our convictions, these conditions are necessary for life to exist anywhere. Man couldn’t find any other celestial body with such conditions till date.

So, the quest still remains. Extraterrestrial life was there in man’s imagination from long back, and this was mentioned in many mythologies and books of ancient civilizations. But, it was only in the recent past when man got some believable clues regarding this. The most convincing tip about alien life was the fossil evidence of bacterial life within some meteorites collected from Antarctica, Siberia, Alaska etc. There were claims about having seen a UFO from different parts of the world. Some paranormal radio signals also cemented man’s doubts on extraterrestrial life.

According to Corfield, mars has long been suspected for the presence of life, from 17th century onwards, when Christian Huygens discovered a strange feature known as Syrtis Major on its surface (186-188). But no one could put forward confirmable evidence in this regard. Such clues and hypothesis have rocketed up man’s eagerness to continue the quest for extraterrestrial life. Space organizations in various countries are doing extensive research on astrobiology. Probe teams are sent to many planets and their satellites for investigation and collecting materials.

Amounts spent by governments on this subject are vast and often criticized largely for the inaccuracy of the outcomes. In my opinion, allotting huge amounts in this regard is not a wise thing to do, because chances for existence of an alien civilization which our race can set up communication with are unconvincingly rare. But, ceasing these long driven projects is also not a wise thing, because, a wondrous discovery of a species on some other planet may bring about a huge boost to our innovative researches.

May be, some micro-organisms hopefully discovered outside the earth will be of utility in making antibiotics for many diseases which we have not yet been able to eradicate. They may generate some hybrid compounds which can give us chemicals which may be usable in agriculture or industry. Such discoveries may lead to some solutions to our problems regarding global warming and climate change. But, it will be good for us to think about a situation when a more intelligent and developed civilization than ours coming into contact with our planet; its