South African astronomer Harry Coumnas recently expressed his views on the possibility of life on other planets. According to him, one of the major reasons why feels there might be life on other planets is the presence of extremophiles on Earth. He says that the existence of these organisms which can thrive in the most extreme environments on Earth is a clear indication that life can also evolve in a world totally different than Earth. He cites examples of many recently found creatures that can survive without oxygen at the bottom of an ocean, at the edges of volcanic vents, at brackish pools of high Andes, & even in completely ice-covered lakes of the arctic.
Harry Coumnas says that if life can originate on earth in the extremes of heat, cold, vacuum, & poisonous chemicals; it can also evolve in other planets too which don’t have human-friendly living conditions. Apart from the presence of extremophiles on Earth, Harry shared one more compelling reason indicating towards the possibility of life and that’s the presence of oceans & lakes in many planets of our solar system, which he believes shows the similarity they all have.
Harry Coumnas also believes that as life on Earth evolved in the ocean, it might originate on other planets the same way. He even points towards the evidence that water once flowed freely on Mars and Saturn's moon Titan too has seas of methane & rivers flowing across its surface. All these evidences indicate the habitability of these planets. Harry is planning to research about the plumes of methane on Saturn's moon Titan and will embark on his space trip to the planet very soon. He is confident that the trip will prove to be extremely useful for the world of astronomy.
