In 500 million years, scientists believe that the Sun's expansion will leave our dear planet Earth inhabitable. Do not fret because scientists already hatched a plan on how to survive doomsday.
Please be warned because they are quite extreme measures.
The Earth is exposed to many catastrophic events, and despite the possibility that humanity might survive, there is no escaping the inevitable.
Astrophysicists Michael Hahn and Daniel Wolf Savin of the Columbia University explained in their essay that while doomsday will wipe a large percentage of humanity, the future generations can still save some species by doing some out-of-this-world alterations.
Changing The Earth's Orbit
Hahn and Savin said that one way of saving humanity is by intentionally moving the Earth's orbit. The scientists suggested taking a passing asteroid and using it to gravitationally nudge the Earth's orbit so it can move away from the sun.
Some questions need to be considered though. How much change in the planetary orbit is allowed?
The Earth's distance from the sun is about 93 million miles and the habitable zone around the sun is between 0.95 AU to 1.69 AU, depending on the size or activity of the sun. So, the planet's orbit can change by 4.5 million miles to as much as 34 million miles and still be within the sun's habitable zone.
The downside though is that large changes in the planet's orbit could make life extinct.
Another way for the Earth to move out of the possible danger zone, while keeping within the habitable zone of the sun is by putting a giant solar sail to the Earth. To achieve the goal, the sail should have a diameter that is about 20 times the diameter of the planet. By theory, the sail will move the Earth away from the sun just like how a sail moves a boat.
Space sailing may not be far from reality. In 2006, Pekka Janhunen of the Finnish Kumpula Space Centre developed an electric sail that used solar wind to produce propulsion power for a spacecraft.
Uploading Humans Into Computers
Perhaps what people will find surprising is the astrophysicists' plan to upload humans into machines.
Is this possible with our current technologies?
The researchers acknowledged that this is way beyond what humanity can do now. Hahn and Savin are looking at 500 million years into the future but they believe that time will come when humans will be able to develop a technology that would bring to life their theories.
It seems their plans are not without basis.
Martine Rothblatt is already developing a robotic head, called Bina48, which is capable of putting thoughts, memories, and feelings of a human into a computer to create a Mind Clone.
The paper was published in Nautilus on May 5.
