It would be somewhat worrisome to actually find signs of primitive extraterrestrial life because of the Fermi Paradox. Given the age of the universe, and how long it took both complex life to develop on earth and for a creature such as us to emerge from that, finding life elsewhere would beg a return to Fermi's question of "Where is everyone?" implying that something comes along and causes evolving civilizations to be exterminated before they ever show signs to their presence to the wider galaxy.

If life, even of a very primitive sort, were found, it would stand to reason that it had done so in the past and that other civilizations, possibly even many of them, had formed in our huge galaxy long ago, giving them time to develop enough to be detectable even to us, so then, where are they?

Then again of course, there are probably many, many known unknowns and unknown unknowns lurking amidst all of the above supposition.

Unfortunately we cannot answer fundamental questions about ET life. Like, how long an advanced civilization lasts, which is capable of manipulating radio signals. Because we can since the last 100 years and we don't know how long we will be able.

If that time is a few hundred years, then very few happen to be functioning _now_ (in relativistic meaning) and very far away to have meaningful contact.

Here's to hoping we can learn more about this. But I feel like this could be caused by us simply not understanding how dimethyl sulfide can be formed on other planets, especially ones over 100 lightyears away..

Maybe we need to widen our search for life. Earth is a planet with about 15 degree average temperature and abundant water and oxygen. So that's what live here consumes and where it thrives. But life is all about adaptation. So, father than looking for planets with similar temperatures and resources, shouldn't we be looking for other possible foundations for life? Maybe there's a thriving civilization out there, living happily at 300 degrees, breathing neon and eating sulfur?

Is there a source for this that isn't plastered with banner ads? I can't read more than a sentence at a time without having to scroll past adverts.

I do wonder why I was stupid enough to pay for a phone with a bigger screen as it just seems to mean more and bigger ads on screen at once and the same amount of content.

Atmosphere of this exoplaned is rich in hydrogen. Also it has likely different atmospheric pressure than we have on Earth. Doubtful there is any life form as we know it. I suspect best we can expect there is something like a primordial soup: a mix of relatively simple organic compounds.

Aren't we looking into the past when looking at things this far away? So, just assuming here, that these are indeed signs of life, would that mean that "they" might have been primitive when these signatures were sent out into space and are now further developed?

My understanding is that the great filter theory means this is bad news for us humans here on earth. And considering the state of the world right now, it's especially ominous. Fate loves irony.

K2-18 is a red dwarf. These stars often emit powerful flares that can "sterilise" lifeforms on nearby planets. Maybe microbial forms can protect themselves though?

Earlier discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=43711376