It’s one of life’s biggest questions – are we alone in the universe?
Now, in good news for sci–fi fans, one of Britain’s top space scientists has declared she is ‘absolutely convinced’ there are aliens out there – and they will be found within the next 50 years.
Dame Maggie Aderin–Pocock, from University College London’s Department of Physics and Astronomy, said she expects a ‘positive detection’ of life on another planet by 2075.
And, while it could be something very primitive, it’s possible we could encounter a presence that has technology ‘far superior’ to ours.
‘In the whole of the universe there are approximately 200 billion galaxies,’ Dame Maggie told the Daily Mail.
‘And so although certain conditions were in place for life to start here on Earth, and this is the only example we have of life, I’m absolutely convinced that there’s life out there, because with so many stars, so many planets, why would it just occur here?’
Dame Aderin–Pocock made her prediction in an interview with the Daily Mail ahead of giving the Royal Institution Christmas lectures, which will air at the end of this month.
They are Britain’s most prestigious public science lectures, and this year’s focus is on the big questions space science still has to answer.
A theory first put forward in 1961 argues that there is a high probability life must exist somewhere else due to the sheer number of planets in the universe.
Dame Maggie said this ‘numbers game’, also known as the Drake equation, is why she believes we are not alone.
She explained that in just our galaxy – the Milky Way – there are 300 billion stars.
‘Each of those stars is a sun like our sun,’ she said, ‘and now we’re detecting planets going around those stars.’
We are already getting ‘tantalising glimpses’ of possible life from some of these planets, she added, referencing a recent discovery regarding exoplanet K2–18b, which is 124 light–years from Earth.
Earlier this year, scientists detected molecules in the planet’s atmosphere that can only persistently exist if there is some form of life.
The discovery was hailed as the most promising sign of life yet outside our solar system, with experts claiming the distant world is likely covered by an ocean and ‘teeming’ with living organisms.
When asked if she thinks we will find solid proof of life anytime soon, Dame Maggie replied: ‘I think that’s where the challenge lies – concrete evidence. But to put my money where my mouth is, in terms of getting a positive detection, I would say definitely in the next 50 years.’
In September, NASA announced the discovery of what it believed to be the clearest sign of life ever found on Mars after findings unusual markings on mudstones in a dusty riverbed.
Scientists think these features contain minerals produced by chemical reactions that could be associated with ancient Martian life.
But while aliens are, traditionally, depicted as little green men in a spaceship, the reality is likely very different.
‘Grey sludge is probably the most likely thing we’re going to find,’ Dame Maggie said. However, there’s a chance we could find something more sophisticated.
‘We might find something that does evolve and that can communicate – and of course, their technology might be far superior to ours,’ she added.
‘I love the idea of aliens on the other side of the moon looking back at us, hoping we’ll “grow up” soon.’
If – and when – we find life, we will have to be ‘incredibly careful’ about how we handle it, she warned.
‘If there is any form of life, we need to make sure it is totally isolated,’ she said. ‘It cannot come into contact with any sort of human presence.
‘But we’re building facilities to do just that so we can analyse them. Because it’s hard to take all our scientific equipment to Mars, for example, but if we can bring samples from Mars to Earth and analyse them here on Earth, we can get a lot more understanding.
‘Of course, the ultimate solution is to send me. Some people retire and potter around their garden, and my retirement plan is to potter around Mars.’
When questioned on the future of human space exploration – and possible settlement – Dame Maggie concluded: ‘I see us as a space–faring people – I see that as the way forward.
‘And I find that exciting that we won’t just be Earth–bound. We will expand outwards.
‘It’s the stuff of science fiction, literally, but science fiction does become science fact.
‘One of the things I love about space is when you look at planet Earth from space, you don’t see boundaries, you don’t see country borders. You just see our planet. And that’s what I would like space to be.
‘I think space might be a way that we unite.’
The 2025 Christmas Lectures from the Royal Institution – ‘Is there life beyond Earth?’, with Dame Dr Maggie Aderin–Pocock, will be broadcast on BBC Four and iPlayer on 28th, 29th and 30th December at 7pm.
KEY DISCOVERIES IN HUMANITY’S SEARCH FOR ALIEN LIFE
Discovery of pulsars
British astronomer Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell was the first person to discover a pulsar in 1967 when she spotted a radio pulsar.
Since then other types of pulsars that emit X-rays and gamma rays have also been spotted.
Pulsars are essentially rotating, highly magnetised neutron stars but when they were first discovered it was believed they could have come from aliens.
‘Wow!’ radio signal
In 1977, an astronomer looking for alien life in the night sky above Ohio spotted a radio signal so powerful that he excitedly wrote ‘Wow!’ next to his data.
The 72-second blast, spotted by Dr Jerry Ehman through a radio telescope, came from Sagittarius but matched no known celestial object.
Conspiracy theorists have since claimed that the ‘Wow! signal’, which was 30 times stronger than background radiation, was a message from intelligent extraterrestrials.
Fossilised Martian microbes
In 1996 Nasa and the White House made the explosive announcement that the rock contained traces of Martian bugs.
The meteorite, catalogued as Allen Hills (ALH) 84001, crashed onto the frozen wastes of Antarctica 13,000 years ago and was recovered in 1984.
Photographs were released showing elongated segmented objects that appeared strikingly lifelike.
However, the excitement did not last long. Other scientists questioned whether the meteorite samples were contaminated.
They also argued that heat generated when the rock was blasted into space may have created mineral structures that could be mistaken for microfossils.
Behaviour of Tabby’s Star in 2005
The star, otherwise known as KIC 8462852, is located 1,400 light years away and has baffled astronomers since being discovered in 2015.
It dims at a much faster rate than other stars, which some experts have suggested is a sign of aliens harnessing the energy of a star.
Recent studies have ‘eliminated the possibility of an alien megastructure’, and instead, suggests that a ring of dust could be causing the strange signals.
Exoplanets in the Goldilocks zone in 2017
In February 2017 astronomers announced they had spotted a star system with planets that could support life just 39 light years away.
Seven Earth-like planets were discovered orbiting nearby dwarf star ‘Trappist-1’, and all of them could have water at their surface, one of the key components of life.
Three of the planets have such good conditions, that scientists say life may have already evolved on them.
Researchers claim that they will know whether or not there is life on any of the planets within a decade, and said: ‘This is just the beginning.’
