There's life out there - and we need to look for it, SETI research center says
By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
5/23/2014 (3 years ago)
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
Is there life on other planets? Or are we all alone in the universe? Astronomers emphatically say yes - they've taken their case to the U.S. Congress, saying that the search for extraterrestrial life is "plausible and warrants scientific inquiry."
According to Stephen Hawking, us earthlings shouldn't go in search of intelligent life in space - they're more than likely to eat us than come in peace. In related news, the Swiss artist who created the "Alien" monster seen in the successful movie series, H.R. Giger died from his injuries in a fall this month at the age of 72.
LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Both Dan Werthimer and Seth Shostak of the SETI Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley presented evidence to the House Committee in order to secure funding to discover alien life.
"In the last fifty years, evidence has steadily mounted that the components and conditions we believe necessary for life are common and perhaps ubiquitous in our galaxy," Werthimer wrote in his testimony.
Starvation never takes a vacation --
"There may even be primitive extraterrestrial life in our own solar system, perhaps on a moon of Jupiter or Saturn. Europa, one of Jupiter's moons, is thought to have a liquid water ocean beneath its icy surface, perhaps a good environment for life as we know it."
Both Werthimer and Shostak both admit that "no evidence exists for the presence of life outside of the Earth", the sheer abundance of planets - "roughly one trillion in our Milky Way galaxy; three times more planets than stars" - suggests that the universe is "teeming with primitive life."
The SETI institute, which is short for "Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence" does not actively look for primitive life, but instead uses radio and optical telescopes "to search for evidence of advanced civilizations and their technology on distant extrasolar planets."
The Earth has been beaming out radio and television signals into the universe for the last 85 years. This time span is only an instant compared to the four billion year history of life on the planet, Werthimer and Shostak say.
"We are just now developing the tools and technologies that might detect distant civilizations," the pair say. "There could be radio or laser signals from extraterrestrial civilizations reaching our planet right now, but we would most likely not detect these signals with these early SETI projects."
SETI has long organized a number of programs designed to sift through potential emissions from extraterrestrial sources, including the SETI@home program that uses downtime on ordinary peoples' computers to analyze incoming data from the likes of the Arecibo telescope, which is the largest radio telescope in the world.
Werthimer warns that the U.S. risks losing dominance in this field of study. China currently is developing a radio telescope 500 meters in diameter, which along with the internationally-funded Square Kilometer Array, "may soon become the world's preeminent radio SETI observatories."
Copyright 2017 - Distributed by THE CALIFORNIA NETWORK
Pope Francis Prayer Intentions for MAY 2017
Christians in Africa. That Christians in Africa, in imitation of the Merciful Jesus, may give prophetic witness to reconciliation, justice, and peace.
Some people see faith and science as being at odds. They find it astonishing that the Church can embrace investigation into questions of ... continue reading
The Pew Research Center has just published a major report on the future of work, jobs, and capitalism in the face of new technology and ... continue reading
Robots are beginning to appear in public, the first generation that will share our public spaces. As they begin to appear, designers must ... continue reading
A diminutive species of hominid, known as a "hobbit" lived in Indonesia some two to 1.5 million years ago. New research suggests they ... continue reading
Scientists are hopeful the search for Malaysia Airlines flight 370 will be renewed following tests that show the plane is likely in a new, ... continue reading
by Catholic Online
- St. David I of Scotland: Saint of the Day for Wednesday, May 24, 2017
- Manchester Bishop speaks out on horrific terrorist attack during ...
- Pope Francis and Donald Trump have monumental first meeting HD Video
- Daily Readings for Wednesday, May 24, 2017
- 'Miracle Workers': Owen Wilson and Daniel Radcliffe star as God and ...
- Daily Reading for Friday, May 26th, 2017 HD Video
- Fr. Frank Pavone: The Pro-Life Meaning of the Ascension
- Daily Reading for Thursday, May 25th, 2017 HD
- Bomb explodes during Ariana Grande concert full of young fans HD
- St. John Baptist de Rossi HD
- Daily Reading for Wednesday, May 24th, 2017 HD
Copyright 2017 Catholic Online. All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, © Copyright 2017 Catholic Online. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited.