An Astronomer Says He Knows Why Aliens Haven’t Contacted Us Yet

A lot of folks, including scientists, are really keen on the idea of advanced alien life. But since we haven't found any ET friends yet, new theories keep popping up to explain why. The latest one comes from Frederick Walter, an astronomy professor at New York’s Stony Brook University. He suggests that gamma-ray bursts, which are incredibly powerful space eruptions, might have wiped out potential alien civilizations. These bursts are so intense that they can be a million trillion times brighter than the sun. If one of these bursts hits a planet, it could sterilize it, effectively erasing any life forms there.

Gamma-ray bursts were first discovered in the 1960s by a satellite looking for nuclear activity from the Soviet Union. Instead, it picked up these intense cosmic bursts. NASA started to study them more seriously in 1991. Although we haven’t seen many of these bursts in the Milky Way, they happen frequently across the universe, especially when old stars collapse into black holes or during the formation of new galaxies. Walter estimates there could be a gamma-ray burst in any given galaxy every 100 million years or so, potentially wiping out civilizations if they exist. NASA, however, suggests it could be as frequent as every 10,000 years.

For a gamma-ray burst to cause massive destruction, it needs to hit its target directly, similar to how a lighthouse beam works. While this sounds terrifying, the actual risk to humans on Earth is pretty low. These events are rare and usually occur far from the Milky Way.

Walter’s gamma-ray burst theory is just one of many attempting to explain why we haven't met aliens. Other theories suggest aliens might not be interested in exploring beyond their own worlds or could have destroyed themselves. Some even speculate that super-intelligent alien life might not exist at all. But if they did, a gamma-ray burst could have been their doom.

The concept that gamma-ray bursts could wipe out life on a planetary scale is both intriguing and chilling. It underscores the idea that the universe is a dynamic and sometimes hostile place, where life can be easily disrupted or extinguished by natural events. While the risk to humans from gamma-ray bursts is considered minimal due to their rarity and distance from Earth, the possibility that they could have impacted the development of life elsewhere in the universe remains a compelling topic of study and speculation.

For more insights and the full discussion on Professor Frederick Walter's gamma-ray burst theory and its implications for extraterrestrial life, check out the detailed coverage on: https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/a60701401/why-aliens-havent-contacted-us-yet/

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