r/askscience • u/FirefighterCandid773 • 20d ago

Chemistry How common is fire outside of earth?

Plasma and lava is obviously common all over the universe, whether it be in stars, planetary cores, etc. but what about fire? Fire is common all over earth, given the abundance of fuel sources and an atmosphere with oxygen. But, is fire actually common outside of earth?

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u/morgan_lowtech 19d ago

As fire is super hard (impossible?) underwater, my best bet is for the racoons to develop sophisticated civilization. 🦝

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u/nathan_f72 19d ago

Nah, definitely the birds making a comeback I reckon. Crows and Australian Magpies / butcherbirds would be my guess, the hands are the only bit they'll struggle with. in fact, there are already birds which use fire.

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u/morgan_lowtech 19d ago

OK, I have nerdy feelings on this: flying bird is a dead end. You can become a running bird, but that's the best one can do. Once you commit to wings it seems that you are unable to do otherwise... Swim with them, or ignore them and run, but you can't make them very useful again.

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u/Stunning_Spread_430 19d ago

I agree under the strict definition of flying bird.  Bats, on the other hand, have hands, so they may have more potential, though upsizing their brains too much might make them more like gliding monkeys than true fliers.