This has not only been a hot issue for debate among the scientific community but has also been an attractive subject among the public. The issue that once was regarded as a secret, as well as a source of anxiety for the public, now constitutes a major portion of Hollywood movies and science fiction books.
But the question remains as to how serious and real the possibility that extraterrestrial life exists can be and if there are any solid scientific arguments supporting the idea.
Over the past few decades, with the rapid progress in the development of such technologies as communication, satellites, radio telescopes as well as biological science, there have been ample findings and evidence supporting the idea that extraterrestrial life exists.
The distinct clues and evidence, when put together, have driven the scientific community to the conclusion that the existence of life is not just limited to our Earth and indeed, it may exist on other planets in our solar system or even in other similar planetary systems in our Milky Way galaxy or other galaxies too.
In order to better understand the arguments for the existence of extraterrestrial life, the criteria that led to the formation of life on Earth have to be understood:
The scientific research has suggested the following events and parameters for the formation of life on our planet:
Having the above arguments in mind, let us take a look at some of the reported scientific findings among the many others:
The full scientific study about the possibility that extraterrestrial life exists was first carried out in 1961 by the astronomer Frank Drake.
Through a comprehensive study of the conditions needed for the existence of life on a typical planet, Drake devised a formula named “Drake equation,” based on which it was possible to calculate the number of planets in our Milky Way galaxy qualified for the hosting of intelligent life.
The equation highly depended on parameters that were not available at his time; however, based on the existing observations, he applied his formula and found the figure of 10,000 for the number of planets in our galaxy.
The calculation was repeated again in 2001 using updated and more precise figures for the parameters used in the Drake formula. As a result, it raised the number to hundreds of thousands of planets with the possibility of some inhabitable planets within a few light-years from our solar system.
There are now experimental clues about the existence of intelligent life in nearby planetary systems in our galaxy. One example is the result of research by astronomers in 2003 by the big telescope in Puerto Rico that led to the detection of a radio signal in a portion of the sky that had no previous record.
The signal that came from a point of the sky between Aries and Pisces constellations was regarded as a good candidate for hosting intelligent life on some planets in our Milky Way galaxy.
With the introduction of more powerful telescopes, radio telescopes as well as satellites designed for surveying of life on other planets, there is much hope for a definite conclusion in the near future and maybe in the next few decades. For now, we will have to keep wondering if extraterrestrial life exists or now.
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I may be naive but I do feel that there is life on other planets. Perhaps not life as we know it on Earth regarding our planetary system but certainly on planets in other solar systems in other universes as we posit in the multiverse theory. If you believe in God, why would this creator only stop his creative force with our planet. Perhaps after noting the turbulent history of Earth, He thought He could come up with a new, improved version! If we are ever able to communicate intelligibly with another alien race that is compassionate and curious about our races on Earth and does't want to destroy us, it would be interesting to find out what their beliefs are as opposed to ours. Technological superiority does'n necessarily rule out belief in a high power. I wonder what our various churches would say about this?