Dean of the Faculty of Astronomy at Harvard University, Avi Loeb, has long been preoccupied with the question of whether we are alone in the universe. In his earlier statements, the scientist made the assumption that fast radio bursts may be evidence of the activity of alien civilizations, put forward the hypothesis that the first interstellar visitor to our solar system could actually be an artificial probe. In a new interview with the German publishing house Der Spiegel, he continued his reasoning on the hunt for alien life and, in particular, shared his thoughts on what our "first contact" will be and what it will mean for all mankind.
According to Loeb, if we ever encounter aliens, then this event will be one of the most extraordinary in human history.
Discussing the question of what our first contact with alien civilizations will be, Loeb said that it was impossible to predict this.
The scientist is convinced that technologically advanced civilizations can exist in space, in addition to ours. At least this confirms the fact of our own existence. Loeb explains that a quarter of the planets we have discovered in other star systems have conditions similar to those on Earth, and at least one of them can have intelligent life.
The professor adheres to what he called "cosmic modesty" and was always amazed that people used to think of themselves as special, although even our own history shows how illusory this notion is. We once thought that the Earth was the center of the universe. In fact, it turned out that it revolves around the Sun, which in turn revolves around the center of our galaxy, which is just one of the many billions of very different galaxies in the Universe.
Promotional video:
Nikolay Khizhnyak
