I've read a few stories about what would be appealing about the Earth to alien species, and solar eclipses were one of the things mentioned - what are the odds of another solar system having this sort of size/distance alignment to result in a nearly-perfect apparent size of both the moon and the sun in the sky?
Another I remember being mentioned as potentially a valuable thing is wood.
Things like water and metals and other elements are just much easier to harvest from asteroids, if you're already a species that can travel between the stars; the concept of aliens coming here to suck up our oceans for the water are just not particularly plausible given what we know now.
My understanding is that it's not just the apparent size of the moon to its sun, it's that the window only exists for a while. So for this to happen on our planet, and right now, means we're super lucky.
Talking about coincidences; there's another interactive on the site that visualises how much of different precious materials may exist throughout the universe. And you're right, wood is one of the rarest.
Another I remember being mentioned as potentially a valuable thing is wood.
Things like water and metals and other elements are just much easier to harvest from asteroids, if you're already a species that can travel between the stars; the concept of aliens coming here to suck up our oceans for the water are just not particularly plausible given what we know now.
Talking about coincidences; there's another interactive on the site that visualises how much of different precious materials may exist throughout the universe. And you're right, wood is one of the rarest.