What counts as alien life may be a much broader category than most people assume. On Episode 236 of the podcast This Week In Space, hosts Tariq Malik and Rod Pyle spoke with researcher Mikhail Tikhonov of Washington University about forms of life that humans might not recognize if they encountered them.
Beyond Carbon-Based Microbes
Popular culture tends to picture extraterrestrials as humanoids, as in Star Trek and Star Wars, or as more exotic creatures from science fiction films. Scientists generally take a narrower view. Searches for life beyond Earth typically focus on carbon-based microbial organisms and other simple life forms.
Tikhonov argues that life could take far more unusual forms than either picture allows. He proposes a new definition: life is something that takes in and transforms energy and replicates. Because that definition does not depend on a particular chemistry or body plan, it widens the range of things that might qualify as living, and it changes how alien life could be identified.
The episode summary presents these as Tikhonov’s proposals and does not describe any observational evidence or specific detection methods.
Also on the Show
The episode also included a segment on a consumer product. Model rocket maker Estes has released a launchable scale model of the SpaceX Falcon 9, described as a detailed recreation of the rocket. It retails for $149.99.
This Week In Space is released on Fridays. Pyle is a space author and historian and the editor-in-chief of Ad Astra magazine. Malik is editor-in-chief of Space.com. The show is available through TWiT and on podcast platforms, with ad-free episodes offered through Club TWiT.
Source: www.space.com
