Peter N. Spotts,
This "Life beyond Earth?" is yet another very nicely composed article. However, I've also noticed as to how nicely you've avoided the nearest of such orbs as having been perfectly good for another chapter or two within your "Life beyond Earth" topic, that are by far the most humanly accessible and should perhaps remain as keen interest to humanity for less than a penny on the dollar.
Not that most folks these days have been all that media focused but perhaps you'd be, in the potential of such other life that's highly ETI worthy about Venus or, perhaps closest to home being that of our own DNA/RNA and thus microbe worthy aspects as to the icy proto-moon of sequestered life that was obtained from our very own moon?
Therefore, instead of further suggesting to your readers that we should be looking and thus funding into the sorts of places that are so gosh darn far away and thereby nearly if not entirely inaccessible to humans, and certainly otherwise horrifically spendy and time consuming even for robotics, it seems that another message could be shared as to where our vast oceans most likely came from, and of the vast numbers of extremely complex life within which needs another honest look-see as to whatever an icy proto-moon could have easily accomplished.
Are you and of your readers up for the task of an icy proto-moon or that of Venus?
Of course, scientifically and probability wise there's been yet another strong possibility that's entirely within the lines, that the origin of our moon and Venus could have once upon a time been closely related to one another.
Regards,
Brad Guth