The alleged forthcoming announcement from NASA comes after NASA’s Kepler space observatory found 219 potentially inhabitable planets outside of our solar system. Ten out of these 219 planets are very similar to Earth, in that they are very rocky and are located in an area of space that is neither too hot nor too cold to sustain life.
On Twitter last week, Professor Zurbechen wrote, “219 potential new planets! @NASAKepler data shows us that most stars are home to at least one planet… Are we alone?”
Since 2009, the Kepler space telescope was been orbiting the sun, constantly on the hunt for new planets that we can study and analyze. It has the ability to detect these planets as they cross in front of a star’s brightness, something that is commonly called a transit.
The most recent discoveries made by the Kepler space telescope included the discovery of 2,335 planets beyond our solar system, 30 of which have the potential to sustain life similar (or not similar) to the kind we see on our own planet.
“This carefully-measured catalog is the foundation for directly answering one of astronomy’s most compelling questions – how many planets like our Earth are in the galaxy?” said Kelper research scientist Susan Thompson.
Regardless of whether or not NASA really is getting ready to make a big announcement regarding alien life, it is still fascinating to consider what it might be like if human beings did one day learn that we are not alone in the universe. Would the alien life forms be intelligent like we are, or would they be less intelligent animals or organisms? If they were like us, would they be pleased to know that we discovered them, or would conflict ensue? Would they be interested in helping us advance our civilization, or would they be interested in destroying it?
One of the world’s most outspoken cosmologists on the topic of alien life is none other than Stephen Hawking, who has recently warned that alien life might not come in peace. In fact, Hawking believes that if we were to discover extraterrestrial life on a distant planet one day, they’ll probably just wipe us all out.
“As I grow older I am more convinced than ever that we are not alone,” Hawking said in a film posted online called Stephen Hawking’s Favorite Places. “After a lifetime of wondering, I am helping to lead a new global effort to find out."
Stephen Hawking then goes on to give details about what he called the Breakthrough Listen project, which “will scan the nearest million stars for signs of life.” He goes on to say that while one day we may receive a signal from a distant planet, “we should be wary of answering back." (Related: European governments launch project to confirm the existence of alien life.)
It is one of the most inspiring and mysterious topics to ever be debated among the people of our world – what, if anything, is out there? Do they know that we are here looking for them, or do they too wonder if they are alone in this never-ending universe? There are still hundreds of questions, and with technology advancing at such a rapid rate, there’s no doubt that over the next several decades, we will be getting some answers.
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