Does life really need planets?

[Kyng]

https://phys.org/news/2024-12-life-planets.html

Do we have a planetary bias when it comes to understanding where life can perpetuate? It's only natural that we do. After all, we're on one.

However, planets may not be necessary for life, and a pair of scientists from Scotland and the U.S. are inviting us to reconsider the notion.

We focus on planets as habitats for life because they meet the conditions necessary for life to survive. Liquid water, the right temperature and pressure to keep it in a liquid state, and protection from harmful radiation are the primary requirements for photosynthetic life. But what if other environments, even ones maintained by organisms themselves, can also provide these necessities?

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Yeah, just because we originated on a planet doesn't mean it's the only place where life could emerge . I don't see why simple life couldn't emerge on smaller bodies.

With that being said, I suspect intelligent life would require planets (or at least moons, which would themselves be orbiting planets !)