"A mass simulation experiment suggests most planets would not have been able to cope with changes to their climate while still supporting life for the three billion years Earth has, scientists have said.<p>"Researchers at the University of Southampton put 100,000 randomly generated planets through the effects of climate evolution 100 times each. Just 8,700, less than 10%, stayed the course at least once, according to the study, which was published in the Nature journal Communications Earth and Environment."<p>The article goes on to mention that a key factor in the long-term habitability of planets is chance. Puts things into perspective for everyone on this pale blue dot.