What is Rare Earth hypothesis?
The '''Rare Earth hypothesis''' suggests that life on [[Earth]] needed an improbable combination of [[Astrophysics|astrophysical]] and [[Geology|geological]] circumstances. It is proposed by Peter Ward and Donald Brownlee.<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Friday|first1=Doug Adler {{!}} Published|last2=July 29|last3=2022|title=Rare Earth hypothesis: Why we might really be alone in the universe|url=https://astronomy.com/news/2022/07/rare-earth-hypothesis-why-we-might-really-be-alone-in-the-universe|access-date=2022-11-09|website=Astronomy.com|language=en}}</ref> If it is true, then the chances of [[extraterrestrial life]] elsewhere is close to none.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Rare Earth Hypothesis – Planetary Sciences, Inc.|url=https://planetary-science.org/astrobiology/rare-earth-hypothesis/|access-date=2022-11-10|language=en-US|archive-date=2022-11-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221110001027/https://planetary-science.org/astrobiology/rare-earth-hypothesis/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The idea has nothing to do with the chemicals known as [[Rare earth element|rare earths]]. The proposed idea suggests that the Earth itself is rare. Certainly, we do not know how rare it is or is not. At present we cannot see planets as small as Earth orbiting their stars. Presumably that could be decided if our powers of magnification were great enough. == References == {{reflist}} [[Category:Earth]] {{-}} {{sci-stub}}