Scientists believe they will find alien life on thousands of planets in next 20 years
SCIENTISTS believe they will find alien life on thousands of planets in the next ten to 20 years.
A task force of experts from the UK, US and Switzerland, named the Origins Federation, launched yesterday to seek extraterrestrial life.
They say modern telescopes can detect “biosignatures” — atmospheres on distant worlds with gases emitted by living things, such as oxygen.
Dr Emily Mitchell, from Cambridge University, said: “We’ve currently only got one biosignature — here on Earth.”
But in ten to 20 years we may have thousands, she said.
The Origins Federation, launched in Washington DC, said it also hopes to “start finding answers on the origins of life”.
Scientists have already spotted 5,000 planets orbiting suns within our galaxy.
Two have water.
Dr Mitchell said: “If you have oxygen, water and methane, you could say, ‘Yeah, that’s definitely life’.”