Off Topic — HabitableZone

Off Topic » in reply to Genetically engineer people to live on other worlds, or in space itself

I don't think so. Here is why.

Life exists by capturing free energy and diverting some of it for its maintenance, growth, and reproduction. The term, "free energy" is used here in its formal, thermodynamic meaning as given here.

While bacteria can subsist at a very low level of metabolism, humans cannot do so and continue to function normally, since the brain alone uses some 25 watts of power on a continuous basis. To provide the requisite energy, humans react food with oxygen from the air.

Imagine genetically engineered humans who could live on the surface of Venus or in Europa's ocean, or stand and live on Mars without needing a spacesuit.


Sorry, I cannot imagine humans (or any other form of life) surviving at a temperature sufficient to carbonize all biological compounds.

As for surviving on Europa, the temperatures are far to low to permit human enzymes to operate. The absence of any atmosphere would make breathing impossible. Furthermore, there is just no free energy out there in any form that any animal could possibly use. Almost everything is composed of ice and rocks which are fully oxidized, so there is nothing to drive any chemical reaction. The comment about oxidation goes for Mars as well.

For the record, I am fairly well convinced that there IS life on Mars, but that such life is microbial in character, lives below the surface, and has a very low level of metabolism. Nothing could live on the surface of Mars for long without some external supply of free energy.

David F Mayer

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