Are We Alone?

Are we alone in the universe?

Though the hunt for extraterrestrial life is still in its early stages, science already has an optimistic response: the galaxy has a large number of planets, many of which resemble Earth. But there is a lot we don’t know.

Thousands more planets outside of our solar system have been verified by observations made both from space and on Earth. Trillions likely exist in our galaxy. However, we have not yet found any proof of extraterrestrial life. Is life in the universe simple to begin with and widespread? Or is it really uncommon?

Planets With Earth’s Atmosphere in Common

Based on NASA’s Exoplanet Exploration data, scientists have discovered almost 4,000 planets, or “Explonants,” since it was first confirmed in 1995 that a planet orbited a star similar to the sun.

NASA’s Kepler space observatory, which launched in 2009 with the goal of figuring out how frequent Earth-like planets are throughout the Milky Way galaxy, is responsible for more than half of these findings.

Astronomers have long dreamed of finding the first real “alien Earth,” and recent discoveries of exoplanets have demonstrated the abundance of tiny, rocky worlds similar to our own throughout the cosmos. Among them are the KEPLER-62F, KEPLER-22B, and GLIESE 667CC Proxima Centauri B.

Missions Sent to Find Life Beyond Earth

The James Webb Space Telescope and NASA’s Kepler and K2 extended incarnations, among other human-led planet-finding efforts, may provide preliminary evidence of possibly habitable worlds. James Webb, whose primary mission is to study gas giants and super Earths, may discover an oversized Earth. NASA’s Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope and the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope might focus on reflected light from a far-off planet to find signs of water vapour, oxygen, or other potent indicators of potential life.

The Question Which Has Still No Answer

Since ages, man have been attempting to study the universe, but we, the men of modern age, are the only ones who know with certainty that there are a number of planets among the stars beyond our Sun. They are found in many different forms, and most of them are around the size of the Earth. However, answering this question just leads to more, as is the case with most scientific inquiries: Which of these exoplanets is home to life, if any? How soon is the beginning of life? How much time does it last?