Are We Alone In The Galaxy?

Are We Alone In The Galaxy? is a question that has been on people's minds for a very long time. It's a question that makes us think about the vastness of space and whether Earth is the only planet with life. With about 2 trillion galaxies out there, it makes you wonder if we are really alone even just in the Milky Way galaxy.

A new study from the University of Nottingham, published in the Astrophysical Journal, suggests that our galaxy could be home to 36 intelligent alien civilizations that can communicate. How did they come up with this number? They think this is actually a conservative guess. It's based on the idea that life forms on other planets in ways similar to how it does on Earth.

The scientists in the study think Earth isn't unique. They imagine other planets like ours, circling stars like our Sun, with civilizations that advance technologically similar to how humans have. They assume it takes about 5 billion years for intelligent life to evolve, leading them to estimate at least 36 civilizations in our galaxy.

Before, scientists used the Drake equation, which considers seven factors to estimate the number of intelligent civilizations. Those estimates were really broad, from none to a few billion. The new method refines this using more recent data and assumptions, suggesting there are likely between 4 and 211 civilizations that could talk to us, with 36 being the most likely number.

But finding these civilizations is a whole different story. These scientists say they could be thousands of light years away.