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| Life in the Vacuum of Space; Complex life living in space | |
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| Topic Started: Jan 16 2009, 04:51 PM (2,683 Views) | |
| Toad of Spades | Jan 16 2009, 04:51 PM Post #1 |
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Clorothod
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Is there any plausible way that complex life comparable to multi-cellular life could exist in the vaccum of space. The number one problem I can think of is temperature, but once it gets past that there are other hurdles like obtaining enough energy to fuel such life. As for origins, I'm not sure whether they would start out in space or move there. Any thoughts? |
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Sorry Link, I don't give credit. Come back when you're a little...MMMMMM...Richer. Bread is an animal and humans are %90 aluminum. | |
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| lamna | Jan 16 2009, 04:56 PM Post #2 |
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Well it would have a big problem stopping itself falling apart, it would need a trough exoskeleton to hole itself together. Then there is the problem of oxygen, without it I doubt anything could become macroscopic. Certainly nothing active could evolve. |
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| KayKay | Jan 16 2009, 05:41 PM Post #3 |
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Adult
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I think they would need to devise a way of being able to put itself into a state of suspended animation until it reaches a stimulus such as presence of food or whatever else it needs to keep its body functioning. In their absence it would need to automatically cease all metabolic activity. I don't think it would come acroos the things it needs very often, and I can't see them being able to travel great distances either (even if they can learn to propel themselves, space is too big for even something the size of a whale to get a significant distance) Perhaps something that originated in space where there was some kind of permenant energy source, but wasn't a planet or a moon or anything. Say it was some kind of cloud of organic molecules, there might be varying densities and gaps in the clouds where life forms have to jump across pockets of vacuum to get to another area. Just a few thoughts. |
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| zypher | Jan 16 2009, 06:35 PM Post #4 |
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Adolescent
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hey, I was hgonna start a topic like this! I think that oxyegen wouldn't be needed, rather organisms would simply have huge surface areas through which they would abzorb starlight or radiation, and convert that into energy... then there would be others that would float around amelisly, using jet purpulsion to excape the grasp of planets' orbits, and they would prey upon the absorbors whenever they came accross one... and then there would be the sifters, who would be milions of miles long, and would devower planets and asteroids to gain the minerals they converted into energy... yea, I know, it seems far fetched, but if space is a vacume with no gravity than there would be nothing limiting an organism's size. |
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because there are an infinite number of alternate realities, withen them an infinite ammount of infinite things are possible... infinitly. two samples of my artwork http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj74/zaraquexon/img016-1.jpg http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj74/zaraquexon/img018.jpg <embed width="384" height="206" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" src="http://www.spore.com/flash/csa_widget.swf?userid=2263016807&username=zaraquex&host=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.spore.com%2Fview%2Fuser-thumbnail" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" scale="showall" name="latest-creatures" /></embed> | |
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| CarrionTrooper | Jan 17 2009, 09:16 AM Post #5 |
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I require more vespene gas?!?
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Space Amoeba: origins thread? Maybe something could develop in the LaGrange points in space... maybe at first it eats at asteroids or space ice, then developed into plantlike autotrophs that could go cryosleep (metabolically) or something, and be propelled through solar sail-like appendages. Radiation absorbing is probably a must, but I don't know about exoskeletons... either rigid/rock-like or none at all, but very elastic. |
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| Rodge the Linkbot | Jan 27 2009, 06:18 PM Post #6 |
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Infant
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One of the reasons I joined was to post a topic like this... oh well. Yes, it is with out a doubt possible. This is my trail of reasoning: 1. We've been able to observe chemical reactions in artificial vacuums with very little gravity using plasma, in deep space the same processes should be possible. So, simple cell-like, if not true cellular life, is possible. 2. If this happens then it should be in an area with some matter, say a nebula. In a nebula created by a Super Nova there's carbon, oxygen, silicon, hydrogen, helium, basically any element you'd need to form a decent biochemistry. That's where ours came from. 3. These cells would clump together thanks to gravity, assuming they have a slightly higher density then the nebula. That should, at least theoretically, lead to some sort of multiceullular life. Now, how it would look, function, and so on is pretty hard to stab at, but I imagine an ecosystem developing like in the darker parts of our oceans.
No, time. The same problem with a cell getting to big, despite nutrition, is how long the chemical processes would take. A multicellular developes the same problem at that scale. The only problem I can think of is energy. Any solutions? I'm thinking either a star (the problems of solar flares can't help but spring to mind. Wouldn't make it impossible but much harder) or some sort of gas giant with a natural electric current to feed off, like the one between Jupiter and one of it's moons (which I just have a hard time with a biology that feeds of pure electricity starting up without evolving from an earlier organism. I just can't comprehend it starting with the life's genesis) Edited by Rodge the Linkbot, Jan 27 2009, 06:26 PM.
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| zypher | Jan 27 2009, 09:35 PM Post #7 |
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Adolescent
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hmmm.... I hadn't thought of that... |
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because there are an infinite number of alternate realities, withen them an infinite ammount of infinite things are possible... infinitly. two samples of my artwork http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj74/zaraquexon/img016-1.jpg http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj74/zaraquexon/img018.jpg <embed width="384" height="206" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" src="http://www.spore.com/flash/csa_widget.swf?userid=2263016807&username=zaraquex&host=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.spore.com%2Fview%2Fuser-thumbnail" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" scale="showall" name="latest-creatures" /></embed> | |
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| CarrionTrooper | Jan 28 2009, 06:27 AM Post #8 |
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I require more vespene gas?!?
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Maybe... the initial cells were like mitochondria, but they can directly absorb electric energy through some chemical process (reverse battery?) As for the form, well... firstly how do they propel themselves through space? If there's some kind of organic thrust, what is the fuel? |
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| Rodge the Linkbot | Jan 28 2009, 09:11 AM Post #9 |
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Infant
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I was thinking they'd be like plants, sort of a Dyson Swarm- space forest thing, I hadn't thought about locomotion. Maybe using a large fin as a solar sail? |
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| CarrionTrooper | Jan 30 2009, 12:15 AM Post #10 |
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I require more vespene gas?!?
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...but solar sails aren't that good at braking... they'd have to develop sailing skills (tucking etc) to prevent them from being blown out of the nebula... and even then it's kinda hard to avoid the occasional wandering asteroid or comet... |
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| Xenophile | Feb 21 2009, 06:45 PM Post #11 |
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Formerly known as alienboy.
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Wouldn't it be interesting if silicon-based organisms developed in an asteriod belt? I know it isn't technicly interstellar space, but it would be interesting if such life could evolve. Scientists have discovered ammino acids in meteors. Silicon-based life probably would not need to use ammino acids, but plenty of other compounds have been found in meteors.The creatures could use the metals or other elements found in the asteriods as a food source. Carnivorous silicon-based creatures might even hunt the " rock eaters " . I know this idea of mine sounds far-fetched, but it is possible. Alien biology is likely to be very different then life as we know it. |
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| Genesis | Mar 6 2009, 09:44 PM Post #12 |
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Newborn
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Look at this from the ground-up, people, not from earth-down. If you completely redo the cellular structure (Or even other structures!) for life, organisms can survive virtually everyhere. Creatures could exist as a gas on a sun, and the sentients there might find the idea of solid life the most ridiculous thing ever. As far asTemperature, If it is built right, and heat isn't used for chemical changes, it is not an issue. |
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| Rodge the Linkbot | Mar 7 2009, 04:33 PM Post #13 |
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Infant
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(Since this has been brought back, anyway) Yeah, but jets are a little more complex to evolve then a sail. Think fins, feathers, pedals, all this stuff could be viewed as 'sail-like', and to some limit do the same purpose. Hold up against fluidic movement and even manipulate it, so it seems a lot easier for a sail to evolve. Especially from something being used to collect solar energy. As for Genesis, you are right. However, we don't have much to go on except the life on this planet. The more alien and exotic stuff are usually reserved for people doing a real project then just a small discussion. |
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| CarrionTrooper | Mar 9 2009, 05:26 AM Post #14 |
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I require more vespene gas?!?
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Maybe a kind of small jet in addition to solar sail, in case they need a quick maneuver. Or a propellant system not based on solar sail... chemical bursts for a bit of jet? |
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| Rodge the Linkbot | Mar 9 2009, 05:35 PM Post #15 |
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Infant
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Chemical blasts or bursts, make sense. They are surrounded by a gas (remains from the nebula, and even if not, you have Hydrogen they could filter) and it wouldn't be hard for muscles to put pressure on amounts to launch off. Space creature changing their direction by throwing out gas balls, sounds gross but would be fun to watch. |
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