Why is water so important for life on other planets ?

Question

Sorry but I may be a bit thick but why do I always hear on the news and elsewhere that water is essential for life on other planets ?

Are these assumptions just based on what we see here on Earth with living things ?

Surely other life systems could exist out there based on a whole range of supporting elements , chemicals , compounds, molecules OTHER , etc -- Does anyone agree with me ?

Answer 1

Water is important to life developing on a planet, but it is not absolutely essential. Yes, I agree that other elements, chemicals, etc., besides water could see bring about new life on other worlds.

Answer 2

Yes. All that we know about Science, with all its sub-categories, is only absolute to our local neighborhood in Universe. Science may actually be relative in the far reaches of space. We simply don't know. But, since we do know some compounds are effected by gravitational and electromagnetic fields, life may take on a whole new relationship in other solar systems. As far as we know, we may be living in a larger being.

Answer 3

i have wondered about this myself quite a few times, i have brought it down to the fact that when media says water is needed they mean for forms of intelligent life such as ours, even if i am convinced there is some sort of life which doesn't need any of what we need to survive.

Answer 4

Yes. I believe that we only know a lot about life here on Earth.

Answer 5

In answer to your last question, some people seem to agree with you.  They are not the knowledgeable ones, however.

The short answer to your main question is that as far as experts can imagine, there is no way, given the physics and chemistry that exists in the universe, for life to arise without liquid water.

You can find two longer answers, by me, to the same question at the links.

Answer 6

as already posted... it's only important for OUR KIND OF LIFE..... water on another planet indeed might mean 'life' had formed there.... but if it DIDN"T already, then maybe WE could move over there  if need be......!!!..... sure it would be cool to find that there was life living in a methane ocean, but that sure wouldn't do US any good... we wouldn't be able to visit or have them visit us!!!.... and we fer sure wouldn't be able to USE any of THEIR methane ... since it's theirs already.... you know how grabby mankind is of good stuff that they want/need..................

Answer 7

Water is all over the place here on earth, so we must have evolved to live on it.

If mercury is all over the place on another planet, other life forms will evolve to live on it.

Answer 8

Some feel the insistence on water is anthropocentric, but it's really not.  Chemistry and physics are universal.  We know the vast superiority of carbon over any other element, to form complex molecules.  And we know the importance of water an all such chemistry.

1) Water is abundant, so it is more likely than any other compound, to be involved in life.

2) Water is a liquid over ranges and temperatures which allow the building of complex molecules.

3)  Water is a solvent, better than any other in countless chemical reactions.

4)  Water is polar.  This is possibly the most important consideration.  Its ability to form weak hydrogen bonds is crucial in our biochemistry and would probably be essential in just about any other.

Other forms of exotic life scenarios have been considered over the years.  But we have to focus our attention on the kind that we KNOW exists here on earth, and the kind that would be most likely in a planetary environment.

Answer 9

beause without water we cannot live our body is mostly made out of water

Answer 10

yes, as far as we know, life cannot exist w/out water, but that dosent mean that that is true. there could be forms of life out there that dont use water for survival, we just dont know yet though.