Summary in seconds: do people believe in the existence of life beyond Earth? A recently declassified US report spills the beans on this subject, prompting the question: “what do we ‘really’ know about intelligent extraterrestrials?” The focus of my upcoming article in this series.
Before embarking on a profound exploration of this intriguing topic, you might find yourself pondering, “why should we even devote attention to finding life beyond our blue planet?” Amidst the constant turmoil and enduring challenges that befall our planet, the search for extraterrestrial life seems frivolous to many. Over the upcoming weeks, through a series of articles on this blog, I intend to shed some light on how much we know about life beyond our planet and what can we do to solve this captivating mystery.
In an article today, I will address a couple of questions.
Firstly, how do people conceive the notion of extraterrestrial beings?
On June 30, 2021, the Pew Research Center conducted a survey regarding the Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs), revealing that almost two-thirds of American adults (65%) believe that intelligent life exists on other planets.1 The same survey found that 51% of American adults think that the reported Unidentified Areial Phenomena (UAPs) by the military could potentially serve as evidence of the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence. 1
On the other hand, in 2015 “YouGov” 2 reported that the nuanced inquiry into the existence of intelligent life had been predominantly posted by Western cultures. The “YouGov” report unveiled that 56% of Germans, 54% of Americans, and 52 % of British believed in the existence of intelligent life from extraterrestrial origins. 3 On the other hand, non-Western cultures poetically allude to the presence of life beyond Earth in works such as the Indian epic “Mahabharata”4 and the Chinese “Gujin Tushu Jicheng”5
Secondly, to what extent is our knowledge regarding potential extraterrestrial visitors to Earth?
In June 25th 2021, an unparalleled declassification of a United States Intelligence report.6 This report shed light on the phenomenon of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) and Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon (UAP). This document was prepared by The Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force (UAPTF)7, and was based on UAP accounts witnessed by military aviators and deemed credible, detailing incidents 2004 and 2021.
The report notes that sightings of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) tend to cluster around training and testing areas within the United States, highlighting specific patterns in the shape, size, and propulsion of these unknown aerial phenomena. Additionally, the report observes that in a few of these instances, advanced technologies are evidenced through unusual motion patterns or flight characteristics. Some of these phenomena appear to remain stationary at high altitudes, move against the wind, execute abrupt maneuvers, or travel at high speeds without a discernible means of propulsion.
The report mentions that Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) lack a singular explanation, with likely multiple types requiring different interpretations. The report concluded that out of 145 incidents documented by the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force (UAPTF), they were only able to identify one object, as a large deflating balloon.
In the upcoming article of “Is There Life Beyond Earth?”, I will delve into humanity’s fascination with extraterrestrial life and life indicators, often referred to as “biosignatures.”
References:
1. “Most Americans believe in intelligent life beyond Earth; few see UFOs as a major national security threat”. Pew Research Center. 30 June 2021.
2. YouGov: a British international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm, headquartered in the UK, with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific.
3. Rachel Hylton. ”How extraterrestrials are perceived across cultures.” UPROX. 3 October 2017. https://uproxx.com/life/space-aliens-foreign-cultures/
4. The Mahābhārata: is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India.
5. The Gujin Tushu Jicheng: also known as the Imperial Encyclopaedia, is a vast encyclopedic work written in China during the reigns of the Qing dynasty emperors Kangxi and Yongzheng. It was begun in 1700 and completed in 1725.
6. “Preliminary assessment: Unidentified Aerial Phenomena”. Office of Director of National Intelligence. 25 June 2021.
https://www.dni.gov/files/ODNI/documents/assessments/Prelimary-Assessment-UAP-20210625.pdf
7. UAPTF: The Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force is a program within the United States Office of Naval Intelligence used to “standardize collection and reporting” of sightings of unidentified aerial phenomena, sometimes termed UFOs