NASA scientists say they're closer than ever to finding life beyond Earth

Well, this is interesting on two fronts!

The launch of the James Webb Space Telescope in 2018 will help scientists with the task of finding life out there but if this doesn't do it...it seems we're getting better and better so if not the James Webb, maybe the next Space Telescope or the next one after that, and so on. The scientists do feel however that we are getting close!

But as the space telescopes launched by NASA get bigger and bigger, the odds of finding life will get better and better. Seager and Gallagher spoke about new technologies in development that may make the task of finding smaller, Earth-sized planets easier to find.

The second thing I noticed was this:

There was a question-and-answer session at the end of the panel. One question, posed by a person on social media, stood out: "If scientists do find life on another planet, will the U.S. government let people know?"

Stofan fielded that one. "Of course we would!" she said without hesitation. "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."

This comment or response says so much if you ask me. It doesn't mean governments don't know, maybe some people do but this just shows the excitement of a scientist who would love to find life out there and would not hesitate to share the knowledge.

Source

Mods: I searched based on the headline and URL and couldn't find a duplicate post. If there is, just delete, thanks.

NASA "Scientists" have trouble finding they're butt with both hands! SOmebody needs to take they're funding away. They are Useless and Arrogant. Closing NASA would be the smartest thing we could do! Turn it all over to the open market and the military were it belongs. We no one thing for SURE about NASA Scientists they LOVE to LIE. Just like they're Lord and Master, His Majesty, O-bun-wax ! You said "NASA" and "SCIENCE" in the same sentence. Shame on you ! !!!!!!!!!!!!

"OMG"--They found another dead single cell organism! They might as well look in the House Senate.

We will never find significant life outside our planet. This telescope is just another prime example of money and resources being wasted. So tired of the space programs. They are so pointless. Instead of worrying about what's going on lightyears away and deal with our MANY problems here on Earth.

a reply to: Wanderer777

In some ways I do agree with you on that point. There is however more than enough resources for us to do both; it is just that there are some very greedy people out there...not the rich but the incredibly, filthy rich.

originally posted by: Wanderer777
We will never find significant life outside our planet. This telescope is just another prime example of money and resources being wasted. So tired of the space programs. They are so pointless. Instead of worrying about what's going on lightyears away and deal with our MANY problems here on Earth.

NASA's budget is a tiny fraction of what DoD gets. Are you tired of wars, armed conflicts, regime changes, and push for global military presence by the America yet? I certainly am. I'd rather see at least quarter of the DoD budget transferred to NASA and other space and science organisations instead. Those things drive technology and science forward, giving us a chance at a brighter future. Sorry you are blind to that.

a reply to: comfortablynumb

In my opinion, they (the real space organization) have already found Earth 2.0, possibly multiples. NASA is just a front to the public, to make it seem like we're not advanced as we really are, projects and missions at NASA are childsplay compared to what the secret space program does. NASA is the congress of space exploration...

It will be a couple decades atleast until the first life bearing planet is revealed to the public, all this "we've almost found one" baloney is just to get us fired up and ready to recieve this information. a lot of humanity just isnt ready for such a revelation, sadly...thank religion

originally posted by: wildespace

originally posted by: Wanderer777
We will never find significant life outside our planet. This telescope is just another prime example of money and resources being wasted. So tired of the space programs. They are so pointless. Instead of worrying about what's going on lightyears away and deal with our MANY problems here on Earth.

NASA's budget is a tiny fraction of what DoD gets. Are you tired of wars, armed conflicts, regime changes, and push for global military presence by the America yet? I certainly am. I'd rather see at least quarter of the DoD budget transferred to NASA and other space and science organisations instead. Those things drive technology and science forward, giving us a chance at a brighter future. Sorry you are blind to that.

No I am not blind to that. But science and technology are why we are in this global mess to begin with. Without scientific and technological advances in present and history then the global elite would have a much harder time doing what they are doing. You think the DoD aren't developing scientific and technological advances other than NASA? Then you are blind. DARPA is the biggest company the DoD pays to develop[ many of the evil technologies that are responsible for millions of deaths. The world would be way better off without technology.

a reply to: Wanderer777

So what do you suggest?

Return to the days of steam engines?

Wait, the involves burning coal, which is bad for the environment.

So returning to sometime prior to 1840?

Or earlier?

Because we all know that back then we all lived so peacefully. That no one starved. That of course there was no need at all for modern medicine, right?

Exactly what era do you think we should return to, so that "evil" technology shall not offend you?

How about during the inquisition? Crusades?

Because we all know that we do not need any of that pesky technology, right?

Say.....what are you doing using tech to make your posts then?

You can throw wars out from the past all you want. Well let's talk about medicine first. Survival of the fittest. Done. Okay let's talk about eras. I don't care what era. After the roughly 200 years of the crusade about 500,000 people were killed. That's a lot no doubt but we killed more than half of that with ONE bomb in ONE day. I'm not saying there weren't wars back then but they weren't how they are now. Now it's the country with the best technology that win a war. Technology doesn't offend me and that was a ridiculous statement. I see why people like technology. It makes life so much easier for us lazy citizens of the world.

a reply to: Wanderer777

I have to agree with Wildespace. I'd rather have money spent on the space program than wars.
Have you ever stopped to look at some of the inventions that is directly related to Nasa?
This link will give you some items directly attributed to Nasa.
www.design-laorosa.com...

a reply to: mugger

That's very interesting stuff but it's nothing I need. I've lived in the woods with nothing but a backpack for an extended period of time and I still have never felt so free and happy. I didn't need technology or medicine. That made me so much stronger. The time I would've spent on my phone or computer was used actually thinking for myself and much more.

a reply to: Wanderer777

You said, and I quote:

The world would be way better off without technology.

Lazy citizens?

I see......so if you or a loved one ever needed a MRI done to determine something seriously wrong with you, they are being "lazy" or that technology that does that scan is "evil"?

A man get's to be in his 50's........and maybe he should have a PSA test done to make sure he's not ending up with prostrate cancer, which if caught early enough can be taken care off just fine.......

Ah, but wait, that involved inventing a lot of technology that finally lead to that. Better that we just let the man dying of something that is easily caught and cured in today's world?

Need to get to somewhere over seas? Let's say to hell with GPS and weather satellite's and weather radars. Further more let's say to hell with the engines and just set sail.....

-------------------------

As with many things in our world, it can be a double edged blade. Many things in the world can be used in a destructive way or in a way that people can benefit from.

War does cause things to be invented. It causes more powerful weapons. It also invents things that get used to help people.

A double edged sword.

It's always been that way, from the first human to pick up a bone and used it as a weapon to take down a larger source of meat to feed everyone..........which also worked great to easily take down a fellow human.

Don't like it? No one said you had to. Just as no one is forcing you to use some very advanced technology that allows you to make a post that literally billions of people around the world can see almost instantly.

Technology and science is not evil or bad.

People who use and invent some of those things on the other hand.............

So put the blame where it really belongs: on people who'd rather see money spent on the military complex (what is it? Something like over 800 billion a year?) instead of a meager 20 billion spent on space exploration......

Which without you would not be making the post you're making right now by the way.......

I honestly don't really know how to think about this in its entirety.

I mean it's an exciting development and an awesome telescope, but I'm personally under the impression that NASA is involved in the 'shadow world' of super-politics and a suppression of truth. This is only my opinion though.

More prominent to me after reading this article, I really do think we are being drip-fed 'alien stuff' and in a way indoctrinating people to its idea and presence.

I'm probably just looking far, far too deep into this but there is a myriad of evidence suggesting our planet has been visited for quite some time, and there are some in the know.

Interesting nonetheless.

S&F

Every day they are 1 day closer .... of course it's a meaningless idea.

CNN has the story too. www.cnn.com...
The talk of earth-like planets is nothing new. The new is NASA, CNN, others, speak of it louder than ever. I'd wish them speak even louder.

Why should we care? I guess the question is being asked since Galileo's time or perhaps since the Ancient times.
The intellectual puzzle "are we alone" and "what are the consequences for religion" is a luxury available only to the developed part of the world. The rest (most of Africa, Asia) don't have that luxury. They would have to accept it as a matter of fact when it appears on CNN Live, and/or in the skies.

I wonder why there aren't more people talking about that every day, people who have perfect internet and intellectual capabilities to do so. Why the widespread denial in forums? Where are those who agree with it (life on other planets etc)? I see you guys, but I don't see a hundred million or more who would probably come to the same conclusions once it becomes irrefutable fact. Why that waiting? It could be done in Y2000. We know there are other planets as scientific knowledge, and that could be made public knowledge on MSM since 2000. You remember Bill Clinton's evenings of millenium with Steven Hawking.

Instead, the world marred in other issues since then, forgetting the most important one, that of our common near future. Hope the world wouldn't wait until the next space mission in 2018!!! That would be a disaster 4 more years lost.

a reply to: comfortablynumb

I'll reserve my enthusiasm since its NASA.

Im still a bit torqued over their last "one for the history books" comment with nothing coming from it.

a reply to: comfortablynumb

This comment or response says so much if you ask me. It doesn't mean governments don't know, maybe some people do but this just shows the excitement of a scientist who would love to find life out there and would not hesitate to share the knowledge.

Perhaps that single particular scientist was sincere in that statement, perhaps not.

Either way, a car crash or unexplained heart attack is easily arranged.

This information when learned, would not be disseminated to the public, no matter how excited to tell us this scientist seems to be.

If you meet a liar, and ask them if they are lying to you, do you expect them to say 'yes, i am lying to you and i'll continue lying to you for as long as i can get away with it'..or would you expect them to say 'No, of course i'm not lying to you'..?

Gullibility, in my opinion, is much worse than ignorance.

It Is Only a matter of time.

There is no way in a universe with at least 100 billion galaxies (blogs.discovermagazine.com...)

with

two to three trillion Planets in our Milky Way galaxy alone ( say it's an average and multiply that times 100 billion galaxies - (scienceblogs.com...)

that there Cannot be other beings alive out there with intelligence - when there are an estimated Billions of Earth like Planets ! (www.forbes.com...)

Hmm 2 trillion x 100 billion.. I have no clue how to write that and it seems Google comes up with "2e+23" whatever that means.. I doubt this post has enough space for all the zeros I'd need LOL

If anyone looks at this and still thinks we are the Only beings in the Universe he needs his head examined.

Edit to add:

Those Billions of Earth like Planets are Only the Goldilocks planets - those are planets that like Earth are a certain distance from it's sun which could make a planet habitable for life AS Humans Know it..

There is nothing to suggest beings all over the Universe must be like us. There could be billions of beings that are not like us and that could each have a physiology that necessitates their own type of Goldilocks planets.

As promised here is the discussion in case you missed it.