Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl
Actually, any A-type through M-type main sequence star may have habitable planets, so we are talking about 400 billion potential candidates outside of the Core. Out of those, each star probably possesses an average of two orbits within the habitable zone, meaning that there are 800 billion orbits within habitable zones. While it is difficult to calculate the exact number of orbits with potentially habitable planets or moons, I would suggest that 20% of them having potentially habitable planets and 5% of them having potentially habitable moons, meaning that there would be 200 billion potentially habitable planets or moons.
Of that number, they are probably equally divided between Garden, Greenhouse, Ice, and Ocean. Garden worlds already have indigenous life and, since the likelihood that they use compatible amino acids is phenomenally low, each one of them will be uninhabitable. Greenhouse worlds probably can be terraformed, but they offer such challenges that an FTL capable civilization would likely not bother terraforming them. It would be the Ice and Ocean worlds that would be terraformed by an FTL capable civilization, so there would be 100 billion terraforming candidates available (the indigenous life of Ice and Ocean worlds are likely single-celled and would be overwhelmed by any terraforming process or driven into any extreme ecosystems that resembled the original climate of the world before terraforming).
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You are being very optimistic about the ease of terra-forming ice worlds and ocean worlds, and yet quite pessimistic about our ability to handle garden worlds.
You assume easy terra-forming, and seem to think that simply turning the atmosphere into one with breathable levels of oxygen will do, when that's just the start. The world still needs a complete set of ecosystems put in place and for them to have been in place long enough to reach some sort of stable state.
Also, why is this civilisation even bothering? They don't need the space, because they can make all the living space they need in habitats around any star that interests them. They don't need anything on these worlds because they already have it. The interesting worlds will be the garden worlds, because they are the ones with new and different life on them, and that means all kinds of new and interesting bio-active chemicals, etc.
Also, if an FTL capable civilisation can easily reach all of these worlds, why would they terra-form all of them? Unless they need them they'll just pick the nicest ones, the easiest ones, and the ones with the best view. If their FTL technology only allows a short reach, they'll do what they can with what they can reach.
Besides, if you're assuming powerful FTL, which is basically magic, and don't like the outcome of the rest of your assumption why are you set on those assumptions? Just adjust them to suit as well.