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Scientists are this close to finding alien life


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Are scientists now closer than ever to finding life beyond Earth? Top scientists at the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) believe so.
 
The scientists believe their search will get another boost from the James Webb Space Telescope once it is launched in 2018, the Los Angeles Times reported.
 
"We believe we are very close in terms of science and technology to finding another Earth, and signs of life on another world," Sara Seager, a planetary scientist at the Massachussetts Institute of Technology, said at a recent panel discussion.
 
NASA envisions the James Webb infrared telescope—with a 6.5-meter primary mirror—to be the premier observatory for the next decade.
 
It is to study every phase in the history of the universe, "ranging from the first luminous glows after the Big Bang, to the formation of solar systems capable of supporting life on planets like Earth, to the evolution of our own Solar System."

Read more about the James Webb telescope here.
 
But even with a telescope the size of James Webb, the scientists admit their chances of success are low.
 
"With the James Webb, we have the first capability of finding life on other planets, but we have to get lucky; we have to beat the odds," Seager said.

You Are Not Alone
 
Despite this, former astronaut and NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said it is improbable that humans are alone in such a vast universe.
 
"Do we believe there is life beyond Earth? I would venture to say that most of my colleagues here today say it is improbable that in the limitless vastness of the universe we humans stand alone," he said.
 
Others on the panel were NASA chief scientist Ellen Stofan, former astronaut and NASA's associate administrator John Grunsfeld, James Webb Space Telescope senior project scientist John Mather, and Dave Gallagher, director of astronomy and physics at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, as well as Matt Mountain, director of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore.
 
Using data from the Kepler Space Telescope launched in 2009, scientists estimate nearly every star in our galaxy alone has at least one planet circling it.
 
The scientists are also focusing on gases in the planets' atmosphere that could indicate life.
 
Tech advances
 
With NASA's space telescopes getting bigger, the scientists believe their chances of finding life will get better.
 
Also, JPL researchers are working on a sunflower-shaped starshade that can block out starlight when used in tandem with a space telescope.
 
This will allow scientists to see the planets around stars, especially the smaller ones that are hard to discern because they shine very faintly.
 
Letting the people know
 
When asked if the US government will let people know if scientists do find life on another planet, Stofan said, "Of course we would!"
 
"That would be so amazingly exciting. We would try to get it out to the public as fast as we can. We want everyone to share in the excitement of discovery," she said.
 
Meanwhile, Seager said they are also looking for ways for the public to help them out.
 
"I've started to get asked that question a lot, and we are working on a better answer for you. We are finding untold numbers of people who want to help us," she said. — Joel Locsin/TJD, GMA News