--- title: "New Study: Alien Life is Probably Way Rarer Than We Thought" description: "Researchers found that thanks to toxic gases, more than half of the planets we initially thought could harbor alien life most likely aren't able to." date: "2019-06-10" modified: "2019-06-10" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/alien-life-rarer-search" categories: - "Astronomy" - "Exobiology" - "Space" tags: - "alien life" - "complex life" - "extraterrestrial" - "the digest" --- # New Study: Alien Life is Probably Way Rarer Than We Thought ![]() *\Image: ESO/M. Kornmesser\* ## The Search for Alien Life Researchers at the University of California, Riverside say that thanks to excessive toxic gases, more than half of the planets we initially thought could harbor alien life are probably dead zones — or at least couldn't host life as we know it. The so-called habitable zone — a safe zone where planets are at a distance from their star that could allow them to hold liquid water — was traditionally thought to be where extraterrestrial life was most likely to develop. But the researchers detailed — in [a paper]() published in *The Astrophysical Journal* today — that taking into account toxic levels of atmospheric carbon monoxide and dioxide, more than half of the planets in that habitable zone wouldn't be able to hold complex life such as humans and animals. ## Narrowed Search "This is the first time the physiological limits of life on Earth have been considered to predict the distribution of complex life elsewhere in the universe," said Timothy Lyons, one of the study's co-authors, [in a statement](). "Our results indicate that complex ecosystems like ours cannot exist in most regions of the habitable zone as traditionally defined." But that also means we might have a better shot at finding alien life. "Our discoveries provide one way to decide which of these myriad planets we should observe in more detail," said Christopher Reinhard, UCR grad and co-author of the study. **READ MORE:** [New study dramatically narrows the search for advanced life in the universe]() \[University of California\] **More on alien life:** *[Harvard Astronomer Predicts What First Alien Contact Will Be Like]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()