Intelligent Alien Civilizations May Exist in Milky Way Galaxy

University of Nottingham scientists estimated that there may be at least 36 intelligent alien civilizations living in the Milky Way Galaxy. The scientists derived the number from the Astrobiological Copernican Limit, which says that intelligent life on an Earth-like planet that orbits around a star similar to the Sun must emerge between 4.5 to 5.5 billion years after the planet's formation. To deduce how many stars in the galaxy can sustain intelligent life, the scientists looked at the formation history and lifetimes of stars in the Milky Way. They also obtained data on the properties of planets from NASA’s Kepler mission. According to the scientists, if the 36 civilizations do exist, detecting them and communicating with them will be challenging because they will be at least 17,000 light years away from Earth. The team added that one upside of finding other active civilizations in the galaxy is that the discovery may give scientists clues as to how long the human civilization on Earth may last. Despite its findings, the study garnered mixed reactions from other scientists who were not involved in it. According to one expert, a number of factors, such as how many Earth-like planets can sustain life, need to be carefully investigated before making any estimations. Another scientist commented that the study’s premise was reasonable, but any plans to find other intelligent life forms are not possible using current technology. The scientist added that today’s research on alien life will mostly just include visiting objects in space that are within our own solar system.