As the ever-electrifying search for alien life continues, astronomers are starting to question their ways. It’s been a rather frustrating task to point radio receivers to the sky with no response. This has been the method for years, but now, a team of SETI researchers is offering up a new solution. By scanning the dwarf planets and stars of the galaxy, perhaps we just may run into some signs of intelligent life.
PLANET ORBITING RED DWARF MAY SHOW SIGNS OF LIFE
Previously, the 20,000 or so star systems out there were thought to be poor targets for finding alien life. Now, thanks to new data from the SETI Institue, some believe that a planet orbiting red dwarfs are worth looking into. In this instance, older is certainly better. Older solar systems have had much more time to produce. Using that logic, it’s more likely that alien life could have evolved on an older planet. SETI is now embarking on a two-year long project to hopefully prove this theory true.
SETI ON THE HUNT FOR ALIENS
The search for aliens is being conducted on the SETI Institute’s Allen Telescope Array. Using a group of 42 antennas, scientists can observe three stars simultaneously. These stars systems were previously worthless. Scientists used to think that a planet orbing a star so close would either have one side too hot, or the other too cold. However, now they have learnt that heat can be transferred from one side to the other, making this habitable zone more likely to contain forms of alien life. In addition to that, data suggests that somewhere between 1/6th and 1/2 of red dwarf stars have more than one planet in their habitable zones. This percentage can be compared to something like our very own Sun and similar stars.
WASHINGTON CONFIDENT IN INTELLIGENT FINDINGS
The search for alien life on another planet has not just been reserved for amateur conspiracy theorists. Experts have been hunting for intelligence for more than sixty years. While no hard evidence has yet been found, Washington is confident that the search is coming to a close. During a talk last year, NASA announced that we will likely encounter some form of alien life within a decade. Most likely, these will be microbes instead of the beings we see on tv and movies. Nevertheless, the prediction is an exciting one and Red Dwarfs just may be the answer.
