Is Alien Life Out There? Vatican Observatory Co-Hosts Science Conference in Arizona
Pope Francis is reducing the power of the Vatican, downsizing the bureaucracy, reshaping the department as one primarily involved in diplomacy. Yet, this Pope and previous Pontiffs feel that the issue of intelligent life in the universe is important enough to rate a four day conference currently going on in Arizona.
The Church touches almost every country and nearly every aspect of human life. It is hugely influential and in a unique position to disclose the facts about alien life. The Vatican is not only the focal point of a vast spiritual and cultural community, it is the visible symbol of a living system of ideas and values; Any discussion of intelligent alien life in the universe would be taken very seriously not only by it's parishioners but by every Christian on the planet.
The list of attendees looks like a Who's Who from NASA, Major universities and the Vatican. Oddly enough the conference is not open to the public but NASA's Astrobiology Institute will broadcast a live feed of 'some' of the sessions.
The list of attendees looks like a Who's Who from NASA, Major universities and the Vatican. Oddly enough the conference is not open to the public but NASA's Astrobiology Institute will broadcast a live feed of 'some' of the sessions.
The Vatican's PR statement (below) about the conference:
Motivated by the rapidly increasing number of known Earth-sized planets, the increasing range of extreme conditions in which life on Earth can persist, and the progress toward a technology that will ultimately enable the search for life on exoplanets, the Vatican Observatory and the Steward Observatory announce a major conference entitled The Search for Life Beyond the Solar System: Exoplanets, Biosignatures & Instruments.Are we alone in the universe? The ultimate question of life beyond Earth and the solar system takes center stage in a science conference led by the Vatican Observatory and a University of Arizona this week.
Nearly 200 scientists are attending the conference, called "The Search for Life Beyond the Solar System: Exoplanets, Biosignature & Instruments," which runs from March 16 through 21 in Tucson, Ariz. The Vatican Observatory is co-hosting the conference with the University of Arizona's Steward Observatory.
"Finding life beyond Earth is one of the great challenges of modern science and we are excited to have the world leaders in this field together in Tucson," said event co-chair Daniel Apai, assistant professor of astronomy and planetary sciences at the UA Steward Observatory, in a statement. "But reaching such an ambitious goal takes planning and time. The goal of this meeting is to discuss how we can find life among the stars within the next two decades." Rev. Paul Gabor of the Vatican Observatory, the conference's other co-chair, added that scientists will give more than 160 research presentations during this week's conference.
According to the organizers, the conference will cover the technical challenges of finding and imaging exoplanets and identifying biosignatures in the atmospheres of far-flung worlds. Other presentations will discuss the study of life forms that live in extreme environments on Earth, which could be apt analogs for life on other planets.
The conference is not open to the public, but NASA's Astrobiology Institute will broadcast a live feed of the sessions. You can learn more about the conference via its website:
There is no doubt that the slow drip of the UFO/Alien Disclosure spigot has just been cranked open a little bit further.
