If we find evidence of biological processes orbiting other stars, so what? It's not like we can get there to study them; even if we could, what good would that do on Earth?

If any method of detection shows evidence of biological processes on an Earth-type planet orbiting another star, we suddenly have two points of data on life in the universe, and not just one.

More importantly, consider the astronomical (sorry) odds against pointing our instruments at a random nearby star among billions of stars, and just happening to find another extremely rare life-bearing planet in a universe where such planets are extremely rare.

This discovery would imply with near certainty that such planets are not rare at all. That the universe is alive. And if life is common, it would be difficult to believe that intelligence would not also be common.

Finding a living world in another solar system would be one of the greatest discoveries in history.