The concept of an Earthlike planet is a guiding force in the search for life elsewhere. But how should an Earthlike planet be defined? By planetary mass, radius, and orbital characteristics? Interior structure? Chemical composition? Climate state? Traditional notions of Earthlikeness attempt to define an Earthlike planet as if it were a noun. But what if Earth is actually a verb?
In collaboration with four other interdisciplinary early career scientists, I introduced a process-based reconceptualization of "Earthlikeness" defined by a continuum of emergent, entangled planetary phenomena. Not only does this perspective have the potential to reshape our approaches to searching for life in the universe, we believe it can also help (re)kindle human relationships with our own environment here on Earth, acknowledging humanity as an integral part of the natural world.
Image credit: Google Earth
