Alien life bombshell: NASA chief says we will find proof of alien life 'in our lifetime'
NASA’S chief scientist Dr Jim Green has confirmed the space agency is on track to discovering alien life “in our lifetime” and confirmed his personal belief alien life does exist.
NASA chief scientist says he believes there is life beyond earth
NASA’s question of are we alone in the universe has fascinated humanity as far back as we can remember. Currently, Earth appears to be the only planet within our solar system and galaxy capable of hosting life. There are, however, signs planets like Mars were once habitable and astronomers look to places like the Moons of Jupiter for alien microbes. Because of these exciting possibilities, NASA is at the forefront of the hunt for alien life and chief scientist Dr Jim Green is certain it will soon bear fruit.
Dr Green appeared in a video for the University of Manchester, UK, where he was asked if aliens exist.
The NASA scientist said: “One of the fabulous programmes NASA’s got involved in is the search for life beyond Earth.
“And it’s not only in the solar system but it’s around planets, around other stars.
“Is there life out there? We haven’t answered that question but we will in our lifetime. And I believe the answer will be yes.”
READ MORE: Ancient Mars was warm and rainy enough to support life says study
Dr Green is a physicist who heads NASA’s Planetary Science Division.
And I believe the answer will be yes
His hopeful comments follow an incredible confession from Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins, who said he believes in life outside of Earth.
NASA’s Planetary Science Division is focused on the celestial bodies within our system, studying and observing them through probes like Cassini and Voyager.
Some NASA scientists believe the planet Mars once thrived with microbial life before it turned into a barren desert.
READ MORE: NASA plans landmark mission to Europa in bid to find ET
But NASA’s hunt for alien life is not limited to the planets Mars or Jupiter and often looks beyond the borders of the solar system.
NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite or TESS mission, for instance, tracks down distant exoplanets that could be potentially habitable.
TESS was preceded by the Kepler 1 and Kepler 2 missions, which similarly looked for evidence of habitable planets orbiting neighbouring stars.
NASA said: “The ultimate goal of NASA’s exoplanet program is to find unmistakable signs of current life.
READ MORE: ‘Surprising’ study finds exoplanets could boast ‘abundant’ alien life
“How soon that can happen depends on two unknowns: the prevalence of life in the galaxy and how lucky we get as we take those first, tentative, exploratory steps.”
Dr Green is hopeful alien life will be discovered within our lifetimes but the search could still take many decades.
NASA said: “While no clear signs of life have ever been detected, the possibility of extraterrestrial biology – the scientific logic that supports it – has grown increasingly plausible.
“That is perhaps the single largest achievement of the burgeoning field of astrobiology, the broad-based study of the origins of life here and the search for life beyond Earth.”