People have always been fascinated by the idea of life outside of Earth
How many times did you imagine, as a child, that the sky hides numerous worlds beyond the stars? Did you make your E.T. friend? Did you dream of being an astronaut and seeking for life outside of Earth? People who work in the field talk about all the mysteries of their work.
There are about five hundred courageous and lucky people who dared to venture out in space. There is also a society, called 100 Year Starship, which endeavors to give citizens the opportunity of traveling in space. The leader of this initiative is Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman to fly on a spacecraft.
Whether there is life outside of Earth or not is a difficult question for specialists as well. It is an exciting subject of research, but, yet, difficult. The only thing that some of the experts can actually state for sure is that the universe is vast, with millions of stars and planets. Because space is so large, there might be the chance for life outside of Earth actually to exist. However, it is much too early to give a definite answer.
On the other hand, there are also specialists who believe that life outside of Earth is a fact that will be soon proved. For instance, some of the NASA officials predict that they will be able to find evidence on alien life in less than ten years.
NASA researchers are also excited about the recent discovery of a planet resembling Earth. It is called Proxima b because it is orbiting Proxima Centauri.
One of the most important features that scientists have to discover on celestial bodies is water. It is important because if there is water, there are high chances that there might be life too. In addition to this, a proper atmosphere that can sustain life is also required.
Scientists expect to find relevant data on Mars. They have previously discovered liquid water on the Red Planet, which is a significant first step. NASA is currently preparing scientific tools for a spacecraft which will be launched to Mars in 2018. The mission was actually scheduled for 2016, but there was some trouble with the equipment.
Researchers have also been concerned about a certain star, whose scientific name is KIC 8462852. They were worried because the star had a strange behavior for about one hundred years: its light was fading away. Some of their theories suggested that alien action could be behind the peculiar phenomenon.
Scientists hope that the future will bring them a certain answer: is there life outside of Earth or not?
Image courtesy of: Wikipedia
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