It’s an age old question of vast curiosity, man’s fascination with life on other planets. Countries spend billions to explore space, hoping for great scientific discoveries that will help their country and the researchers to create a place in history. The US government funds billions to NASA, while society’s poorest get a couple of million for this or that program.
Galileo, the famous Greek astronomer was searching the stars, looking for what else was out there besides us.
Man, were he to conquer the galaxies, would most certainly be searching for the Heaven phenomena, or its lack to exist. Deep in the hearts of men lie their quest to find the gods of old, the God of today. We all wonder, what if the stories are true?
Recently I saw a program titled THE PRIVILEGED PLANET, by Illustra Media. It may answer some of your own questions, or raise more.
In 1997, Voyagers 1 and 2 went to the outreaches of the Solar System to Jupiter, Venus, Saturn and Neptune. Toyager 1 sent pictures of our hone star and 6 of the home planets, and Earth, which sat 4 billion miles away.
Besides the awesome galactic beauty of spangled designs of dazzling color and light, there sat Earth, a lonely blue ball reflected in a rainbow spectrum of light from the sun. Of the hundreds of photos sent back to Earth, no other such shot showed such a lonely planet whose only companions are the sun that nourishes her, and the moon that pulls her, giving her the seasons.
Carl Sagan believed, “our planet is but a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark.”
Between 1921 and 1926, Edmund Hubble used his huge telescope to discover billions upon billions of galaxies, stars, and planets. The search for extraterrestrial intelligence, (SETI) has been trying to eavesdrop for years on signals from outer space. To date nothing has been detected. Because of the richness and vastness of the Earth, some scientists do believe Earth must be extraordinary or a miracle. . .
Today, as the space station set up on Mars searches for water, it is the desperate hope of the scientific world that ice will be discovered, as ice=water=life. This supports the theory of life evolving from the seas.
Guillermo Gonzalez, an Astro Biologist from Iowa State University believes water in and of itself is certainly not enough to sustain COMPLEX life, such as animals and humans. He and colleague, Philosopher Jay Richards at the Discovery Institute joined together to test the water theory. They concluded that a large list of factors must be equally in place to sustain life. They are:
1. A safe habital zone
2. Correct mass
3. Nearly circular orbit
4. Protected by gas planets
5. Must have a magnetic field for platectonic activity
6. Oxygen rich atmosphere
7. Must be orbited by large moon to warm and cool the climate, and regulate the seas
8. Gravitational force necessary, and must be just right
9. Must have nuclear force
10. Proton mass
11. Electron mass
12. Barron energy resource
13. Boltzmann and Planek’s constant
Each of the above factors are detailed as to their mandatory and equal necessity to provide the balance to sustain complex life. If one factor is slight out of balance, it would cause catastrophic affects. For example if our gravitational force were but a wee bit stronger, we’d be crushed to the ground like ants. Five degrees closer to the sun makes us barren like Mars, and 20 degrees farther away freezes us into an ice ball.
The real question is why were we set just right, with all factors in place, and apparently only us?
Great astronomers from the past; Capernium, Galileo, and Isaac Newton all believed, “the universe itself is a product of an intelligent being.”
Where is such a being, and where is he, or for the politically correct, she? The world wants to know such a being.
Author Donald Brownlee wrote in his book RARE EARTH, that, “The universe is hostile to life, except for Earth.” The question is raised, “Did we hit the cosmic lottery?”
Earth is the only planet known to date to have a transparent atmosphere that allows us the best vantage point to view outer space. Many among the fraternity of scientist believe the universe exists for us to live and possibly extend ourselves to discover other aspects of the universe, and to learn our own purpose.
Is there life in outer space? I think not. It’s billions of gas planets, and suns and moons and stars that surround us from every side, as we spin towards our own eternal place among the galaxies. If one were living in a vast dessert, and had great need of water for essentials, would he not be joyous at discovering a green oasis? Earth, is that rare oasis in the midst of the galactic dessert.
Meanwhile, as the search continues for a chunk of frozen water beneath a barren planet, I’ve come to know the importance of enjoying life on this oasis, where the grass is green and the oceans are blue. We shall all leave it soon enough, and I’m sure return to the “intelligent being” that put us here for a specific purpose that we have yet to fathom completely.
To learn more on why all relevant factors must be intact to sustain complex life, THE PRIVILEGED PLANET is worth a viewing. It is produced and directed by Ladd Allen, with Executive Producers, James W. Adams and Lawrence D. Frenzel. Once you see this awesome documentary that includes a complete solar eclipse over Northern India, you too may become content just to “stop and smell the roses” here on this special sapphire and emerald gem, that hangs in the perfect balance of the universe.
