New research challenges the idea life beyond Earth is possible

Recent research reveals that our universe might not be the most conducive environment for the emergence of extraterrestrial intelligent life.

In the 1960s, American astronomer Dr. Frank Drake developed an equation to estimate the number of detectable extraterrestrial civilizations in our Milky Way galaxy.

Decades later, astrophysicists from Durham University, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Edinburgh and the Universite de Geneve, have advanced this approach.

Instead of focusing on our galaxy alone, they considered how the universe's accelerating expansion and the corresponding star formation rates might influence life.

“Understanding dark energy and the impact on our Universe is one of the biggest challenges in cosmology and fundamental physics,” said Dr. Daniele Sorini, a researcher at Durham University’s Institute for Computational Cosmology.

The model they created examines a mysterious component called dark energy, which is believed to drive the universe’s expansion and accounts for over two-thirds of its makeup.

Dark energy

Dark energy—a force that causes the universe to expand faster—remains one of the biggest mysteries in science, according to the lead researcher of the project, Dr. Sorini.

It influences how stars and galaxies form, which in turn affects the potential for life. The new model shows that universes with more dark energy densities are predicted to form stars more efficiently.

In our universe, about 23 percent of ordinary matter becomes stars, but this efficiency could rise to 27 percent in universes with more dark energy.

The researchers explored a wide range of hypothetical universes, from those with no dark energy to those with up to 100,000 times more than our own.

They calculated the likelihood of a universe producing intelligent observers, based on the idea that more stars increase the chances of life.

Despite finding that some universes might be more favorable for life, they were struck by how close our universe’s dark energy value is to the one that maximizes star formation.​

“Even a significantly higher dark energy density would still be compatible with life, suggesting we may not live in the most likely of universes,” Dr. Sorini stated, hinting that our universe may not be the most ideal environment for intelligent life to emerge​.

This finding challenges the long-held assumption that our universe’s characteristics are finely tuned for intelligent life and raises questions about whether more favorable universes exist within a multiverse.

The Fermi Paradox

The findings tie into the well-known Fermi Paradox, - physicist Enrico Fermi's famous question about why we haven't found other intelligent civilizations despite the vast number of potential habitable planets in our galaxy.

According to the scientists, one possible explanation might be that our universe isn’t the best environment for life.

In fact, if other universes exist, they could have conditions that make it much easier for intelligent life to develop. This would make our universe one of the less likely places to find life.

The new research offers a fresh perspective on this enigma. Scientists suggest that our universe might simply not be the most ideal environment for nurturing intelligent life.

If the multiverse theory holds true, there could be countless other universes with conditions far more suitable for life to flourish.

In fact, if other universes exist, their higher star formation rates or more stable cosmic conditions could not only make life possible but also make it much easier for intelligent —aka extraterrestrial— life to develop.

But, this would make our universe an outlier, one of the less likely places to find life.

Professor Lucas Lombriser from the Universite de Geneve points out that exploring these ideas could change how we think about our place in the cosmos.

“It will be exciting to employ the model to explore the emergence of life across different universes and see whether some fundamental questions we ask ourselves about our own Universe must be reinterpreted.”