Researchers Told Congress That We Could Find Aliens in Next 20 Years

People have always been fascinated with and wondered about the existence of life beyond Earth. A team of astronomers believe that there is an alien life in the universe and with proper funding, it is possible to find it within a period of 20 years.

This possibility rose after astronomers, with California-based Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute, told Congressional science committee members about the finding, during a hearing of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Science, Space, and Technology on Wednesday 21 May 2014.

“The universe is likely to be teeming with primitive life,” Werthimer said, citing the numerous habitable planets that have been discovered by astronomers in recent years. “In the last 50 years, evidence has steadily mounted that the components and conditions we believe necessary for life are common and perhaps ubiquitous in our galaxy. The possibility that life has arisen elsewhere, and perhaps evolved intelligence, is plausible and warrants scientific inquiry.”

According to Discovery News, the majority of government funding has been focused on Mars exploration, although scans of the atmospheres of distant planets also regularly take place. Werthimer and Shostak believe that increased efforts on finding extraterrestrial life could yield results within the next 20 years.

“The fact that we haven’t found anything means nothing,” said Shostak, “We’ve only just begun to search.”

Agencies/Canadajournal