Yeah thats why I highlighted the two variables. If those variables have even a smidgeon of probability, the number jumps to the millions. Pretty cool stuff
The drake equation. Frank drake American astronomer and founder of S.E.T.I devised an equation to estimate the number of civilizations capable of communicating in our own galaxy (the Milky way). While the search for life continues in our own solar system astronomers are also looking for life beyond our own galaxy. There are billions of stars similar to our own sun in the milkyway. Might they have planetary systems like ours on which life could begin? Astronomers now know that planets are a bi-product of starbirth, and have detected the presence of 'extra solar' planets. Based on our current understanding of our own planetary system astronomers can begin to predict how common life is likely to be in the universe. The Milkyway Unless a method for faster than light travel or communication is devised It is likely that if we are going to have any communication with another civilisation it will be limited to our own galaxy, the Milkyway. Other galaxy's are so far away that it would take millions of years for a signal to reach us! The Milkyway is huge! It is so wide that it would take 100,000 years for a radiowave travelling at the speed of light (186,000 miles per second (300,000 km per second)) to get from one side to the other. The Milkyway contains over 200 billion stars. It is also estimated that there are 50 million stars within 1000 light years of our own sun. As suns go; our sun is a very ordinary, middle aged, middle class star which is situated about 2/3rds out from the galactic center. There are millions of similar suns spread throughout our galaxy alone. http://www.area52online.com/sections/simulations/drake/simulation5f.html
I watched a cool show on how we were going to escape this solar system as the sun grows. They speculated that we should first populate Mars. We would do this as the earth gets to warm for life and Mars becomes warm enough to inhabit. Believe it or not one of the options to make Mars warm enough and habitable was to pollute it with greenhouse gasses so plant life could thrive.
What was the name of that show, sound interesting? NASA must be testing this option right now, using the earth as its giant test specimen.
Ive been posting this for years........now it's getting attention.......sweet. How about Ike warning us of the coming raping of the military industrial complex.....??
