Earth might not be the best home for life in the universe

Space · Published 24 October 2026 · Updated 25 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: For decades, we searched for a 'second Earth.' But new data from the Kepler space telescope suggests we might be looking for the wrong thing. Some planets outside our solar system could actually be superior environments for life to flourish, offering conditions even more hospitable than our own.

In September 2018, researchers published a study in the journal Astrobiology identifying at least two dozen exoplanets that could be 'superhabitable.' Rather than seeking a perfect mirror of Earth, astrobiologists like Dirk Schulze-Makuch argue that planets that are slightly older, wetter, warmer, and larger than Earth might be better suited for complex life. A larger planet, for instance, provides more landmass and higher gravity, which can support a thicker atmosphere—a significant advantage for organisms capable of flight.

These 'superhabitable' worlds might resemble Earth during the Carboniferous period, roughly 359 million years ago, when much of the landmass featured tropical rainforest climates. Because these planets are slightly warmer, they might lack the vast, barren polar regions found on Earth. However, this warmth must be balanced by higher moisture levels to ensure that deserts do not dominate the landscape. The goal is to find planets where life has the necessary time and stability to evolve; for context, it took 3.5 billion years for complex life to appear on Earth, and 4 billion years for advanced human-like life.

The Kepler mission was instrumental in uncovering these worlds. Launched in 2009, it revolutionized our understanding of the cosmos by proving that planets are more numerous than stars in the Milky Way. While many discovered exoplanets are inhospitable—such as KELT-9b, which is hot enough to melt its own atmosphere—Kepler also revealed that nature often produces jam-packed systems. These findings shift the focus from finding a twin of our home to identifying the diverse, and potentially superior, conditions where life might truly blossom.

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