Searching for life on other planets with astrophysicist Sara Seager
Searching for life on other planets with astrophysicist Sara Seager  
Podcast: ReThinking
Published On: Tue Feb 17 2026
Description: Sara Seager is an astrophysicist and planetary scientist whose research focuses on exoplanets—planets outside our solar system orbiting other stars. In this episode, Adam and Sara investigate the possibility of finding alien lifeforms in other solar systems or even on planets or moons closer to home, and Sara breaks down how scientists detect exoplanets and why this kind of science is so important for advancing discoveries here on Earth. They debate the likelihood of discovering intelligent alien life in our lifetime, and Sara reflects on the unique childhood circumstances that led to her groundbreaking work.Host & GuestAdam Grant (Instagram: @adamgrant | LinkedIn: @adammgrant | Website: https://adamgrant.net/)Sara Seager (Website: https://www.saraseager.com/)ReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcriptsLearn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.