The future and fate of living systems

Abstract

The future of life on Earth and elsewhere in the universe is the least studied of the three fundamental questions posed by NASA's Astrobiology Roadmap (Des Marais and Walter 1999; Des Marais et al. 2003). A lack of focus on this question raises two concerns. First, in a sense, the future of life is the question that has the greatest practical significance, since an ability to anticipate the consequences of human actions for the biosphere on Earth and wherever humans may come in contact with alien life in the future, should be a critical consideration in formulating policies for human activities on Earth at present and exploratory strategies for the future. The only one of the Roadmap's seven Goals and Objectives (#6) that relates to the future of life focuses narrowly on the fate of ecosystems and the evolution of microbes on Earth and in alien environments. The biosphere is now being changed so rapidly by anthropogenic forces, though, that the bigger and more immediate question is the general fate of groups of organisms, including especially those with the greatest environmental impact (Tong 2000; Woodruff 2001). Secondly, on planetary systems older than the Solar System, there is little reason to doubt that life has emerged in some cases, and therefore had longer to evolve than on Earth. The question may then be asked whether the history of life on Earth provides insights into the fate of living systems that have had longer to unfold. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2008.