Talk:Sulfur planet/@comment-71.28.84.245-20130913224512/@comment-212.175.32.131-20150531092052

I disagree. Sulfur is quite likely to be found on most planets, since it is a common by-product of volcanic eruptions.

One thing that I am skeptical about is the possibility of a Sulfur biochemistry. Sulfur is an important component in some amino acids and nucleic acids, but it cannot provide a base for life itself. Sulfuric Acid is an excellent solvent for many chemical reactions so the equation stated in the article is quite possible. Aliens which have evolved on planets which have sulfuric aicd as a solvent may have enzymes specially designed to work at a lower pH in acidic conditions, such as pepsin.

There was one thing in this article that striked me, the author stated that sulfur planets would have "lakes or oceans of sulfuric aicd". The melting point of Sulfuric Acid is 10˚C and its boiling point is 337˚C, so its thermodynamic properties vary from that of water. Due to its high boiling point, it is more difficult to get sulfuric acid to evaporate. The evaporation of water from oceans as well as from plants (transpiration) is an important part of the water cycle. In a planet with sulfuric acid oceans this is even more difficult since sulfuric acid requires more energy to turn into a gas.

Rain on a sulfur planet will also require water. The sulfur dioxide released from respiring and photosynthesising organisms will dissolve in water to give sulfuric acid. Unless, like in Venus, Carbon Dioxide breaks down by UV rays and creacts with sulfur dioxide to produce sulfur trioxide, which can then react to form sulfuric acid. So even a sulfur planet will need some water, or the raining sulfuric acid will be so concentrated that it will corrode rock and kill trees and organisms.

The writer of the article does deserve credit however, though sulfur planets may not be hospitable for human life, there are endless possibilites for unique organisms to evolve. Furthermore, the writer does state that sulfur planets would be around 66˚C, which is ideal to allow the evaporation and condensation of sulfuric acid. I'm quite excited about sulfur planets, but I wouldn't go to one for a vacation!