The universe is unbelievably large, so how can there not be life out there?
By Andrea Mendez
In the vast and dark universe, there’s no way Earth is the only place in the universe where living things exist. The universe has been around for billions of years before humans even existed. So life on other planets could have existed before we even came around. There could even be life in a different part of the universe, on another planet right now. But can only see so far into space, we could just be too far to reach other living things in our universe.
In order for life to be sustained on a planet for a long period of time the planet would need to have water, carbon, and nutrients. According to NASA, there are planets out there that have similar elements to Earth and are about the same size. However, no life has been discovered.
An exoplanet is a planet that exists beyond our solar system. The exoplanets NASA has been observing and researching exist hundreds of light years away. What NASA says is, “Discovering another blue-white marble hidden in the star field, like a sand grain on the beach, will probably require an even larger imaging telescope.” The current telescopes NASA uses do not block the light too well, so the images of the exoplanets are dim.
The technology NASA uses has come a long way, however, one day even better technology and telescopes may prove of existing life on another planet.
Others may say that living things don't exist on other planets because there hasn’t been a planet that has reached out to us. In the past, NASA has released things like music and pictures, but there’s been no proof of another life in space receiving those items or sending anything back. What I’d say to that is life on other planets doesn’t have to be similar or as advanced as humans. Life can exist as plants, organisms, or different species that we don’t have on Earth that aren’t able to communicate back or travel in space.
Many people think of UFOs when talking about advanced life other than humans existing in the universe. Although NASA hasn’t determined that any possible UFO sightings have been from extraterrestrial beings, I believe there could be information that is not known to the public. The National Archives has records of different military officers making reports of UFO sightings while on the job. The U.S. government is also known for the secrecy of Area 51. The National Archives News article, “Do Records Show Proof of UFOs?” states, “The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum possesses a document relating to UFOs composed by Ford when he was House Minority Leader and Congressman from Michigan.”
Although I think Ford doesn’t deserve more trust in his report because he was a president, I do think it’s interesting that military officials and former U.S. presidents believe in extraterrestrials or claim they have seen evidence of it.
Life hasn’t been discovered in space yet, but I believe that life will be discovered one day. When technology advances new groundbreaking discoveries will be made.