Human beings have always had a strange fascination with the possibility of aliens despite the fact that scientists have discovered very few planets that could potentially support life. That is, until now.
According to the New York Times, European astronomers "found what might be the best candidate for a Goldilocks planet yet: a lump of something about 3.6 times as massive as the Earth, circling its star at the right distance for liquid water to exist on its surface — and thus, perhaps, to host life." The implications of the discovery could be incredible; the planet's distance from its star puts it "in the star's so-called habitable zone." Life, therefore, could exist on these planets.
While the discovery of these planets is exciting, scientists caution that "it would take years and observations from telescopes not yet built before those assumptions could be tested and a search for signs of life could be undertaken." Still, I can't help but imagine a world identical to ours 36 light-years away -- a world in which aliens might wear promotional t-shirts and custom backpacks of their own.
Even though we'll need more proof to verify new signs of life, knowing that aliens could exist is undoubtedly breathtaking. "I think we're in for an incredibly exciting time," said Lisa Kaltenegger, a habitability expert at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Germany, according to Fox News. "We're not just going out there to discover new continents — we're actually going out there to discover brand new worlds."
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