First Things THRST E110 - Black Holes, Ancient Civilisations & The Search For Alien Life | David Kipping
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Oct 2, 2025 
David Kipping, a renowned professor of astronomy specializing in exoplanets and the search for extraterrestrial life, dives into fascinating topics. He discusses the implications of finding microbial life on Mars and how it would complicate our understanding of life in the universe. Kipping also explores rogue planets, the great filter that might threaten humanity's survival, and the paradox of whether ancient civilizations existed on Earth. He shares insights on the dynamics of our solar system, the risks of competition in innovation, and the challenges of confirming alien life.
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Rogue Planets Can Destabilize Systems
- Rogue planets and interstellar objects likely drift between stars and can occasionally pass through solar systems.
- A large rogue planet passing through ours could destabilize or eject planets via gravity.
Earth's Long-Term Clock Is Running
- The Moon is receding and stealing Earth's angular momentum, slowly lengthening days.
- Solar brightening will render Earth uninhabitable to complex life in about one billion years.
We Can Date The Universe, Not Its Origin
- Cosmology measures the universe's age by reversing cosmic expansion using Hubble's law.
- Physics breaks down approaching the Big Bang, leaving the true origin unknown and likely untestable.
