For centuries, mankind has looked to the skies and wondered, “are we alone in the universe?” In one month SCIENCE, a division of Discovery Communications, partners with TED and SETI Institute (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence), to enlist like-minded individuals everywhere to tackle this defining question with Are We Alone?, a breakthrough multimedia initiative.

“Are We Alone?” is timed to support a major new resource called SETI Live which will empower and mobilize “citizen scientists” from all walks of life to join the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.

SCIENCE’s month of programming begins on-air on Tuesday, March 6 at 10:00 PM (ET/PT) with the world premiere of Morgan Freeman’s ‘Through The Wormhole: Will We Survive First Contact?’ forecasting man’s first encounter with an extraterrestrial life form.  Next, renowned experts including Nick Sagan and SETI Institute’s Dr. Jill Tarter come together to explore how alien life might communicate with Earth in the debut of ‘Alien Encounters’.

The two-part event airs Tuesday, March 13, and Tuesday, March 20 at 10:00 PM (ET/PT). Finally, SCIENCE concludes this month of all-new programming by presenting firsthand accounts from NASA astronauts who witnessed the mysterious with ‘NASA’S Unexplained Files’ on Tuesday, March 27 at 10:00 PM (ET/PT).

In addition to the programming, ‘Are We Alone?’ brings viewers into the search for extraterrestrial life – deeper and more profoundly than ever before – by supporting the introduction of the SETI Live platform, developed by Zooniverse. SETI Live will enable members of the public to analyze data coming from the Allen Telescope Array (ATA).

This March, SETI will work with live data and call upon citizen scientists to identify potential signals from extraterrestrials. By the end of the month, the real-time analysis of community members will actually decide what the ATA observes next. Both Science’s programming and links on sciencechannel.com will drive traffic to SETI Live.

‘Are We Alone?’ started with a wish that Center for SETI Research director, Dr. Jill Tarter, made at the TED Conference in response to winning the annual TED Prize. Dr. Tarter sought help in her mission to trigger the most meaningful search for extraterrestrial intelligence to-date by uniting all individuals who have ever looked to the sky and thought, “are we alone in the universe?”

Answering SETI’s call was the thought-leading TED group that then enlisted SCIENCE, entertainment’s home for deep science content. Together, the three organizations have combined for a multimedia, call-to-action campaign that will mobilize those curious about life beyond Earth to turn their passion into action.

“With ‘Are We Alone?’ we want to draw viewers in with smart, lean-forward programming, and empower them to uncover evidence of extraterrestrial life,” says Debbie Adler Myers, General Manager and Executive Vice President of SCIENCE. “At SCIENCE, we question everything – and no topic inspires more questions than the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence.”

‘Throught The Wormhole: Will We Survive First Contact?’ is produced by Revelations Entertainment and The Incubator. James Younger and Lori McCreary are executive producers for Revelations Entertainment. ‘Alien Encounters’ was produced for SCIENCE by Karga 7. Rocky Collins is executive producer for SCIENCE. ‘NASA’S Unexplained Files’ is produced for SCIENCE by WAGtv. Wyatt Channell is executive producer for SCIENCE. Bernadette McDaid is the vice president of production for SCIENCE and oversees all production for the network.

‘Are We Alone?’ Episode Description

‘Throught The Wormhole: Will We Survive First Contact?’: World Premiere Tuesday, March 6 at 10 PM (ET/PT)

Mankind longs for proof that we are not alone in the universe, but the moment of first contact will irrevocably change the world as we know it.. Whether that is a bad thing for humanity or the beginning of a great future is the subject of much debate. In this episode we’ll meet scientists probing the big questions: Will the alienswe encounter be warlike? How will we talk to creatures with whom we share no common ground? Could they have come here already? And can we visit aliens on their own turf?

‘Alien Encounters’

Part 1- The Message World Premiere on Tuesday, March 13 at 10 PM (ET/PT)

Part 2- The Arrival World Premiere on Tuesday, March 20 at 10 PM (ET/PT)

In two dramatic hours, ‘Alien Encounters’ lays out a plausible hypothetical scenario for a first contact event. What would really happen if we got a message from space? How will humans react when we learn that a message from a distant technology or a spacecraft is on its way to Earth? Will humans learn from aliens, or become colonial subjects?

Some of the world’s leading astrophysicists, astrobiologists, and sci-fi writers help unravel the scientific, cultural and psychological impact of this world-changing global event. This show is made in cooperation with The SETI Institute which was founded in 1984 and had renowned astrophysicist Carl Sagan as one of its Board of Trustee Members. Carl’s son Nick is now following in his father’s footsteps wondering, “How will we meet our galactic neighbors?”

‘NASA’S Unexplained Files’: World Premiere Tuesday, March 27 at 10 PM (ET/PT)

Countless mysterious objects have been caught by NASA’s cameras. In this special, we’ll reveal NASA’s top ten unexplained encounters using original footage and groundbreaking interviews with astronauts and scientists. Can these phenomena be explained away through science and detective work? Or have NASA’s cameras potentially captured the first traces of extraterrestrial life?

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The Drake equation is a probability law which estimates the abundance of intelligent life in our Galaxy, the Milky Way. It is quite simple in appearance, and anyone can play with the variables in order to make their own personal estimate.

The variables encountered in the equation include the proportion of intelligent to non-intelligent life; the proportion of stars which would be capable of sustaining life in their environment to those who cannot; the number of planets a star is probable to have existing in this habitable zone, if the star were to harbour planets.

Although the scientific results of this equation are in great debate, it was developed by Prof. Frank Drake in order to open discussion on the topic for the famous meeting at the Green Bank radio observatory in 1961.

Current estimates ranging from the opinions of pessimists to optimists, are of the order of it being next to impossible to communicate with other lifeforms in our Galaxy, to a possible ten different alien civilisations who are currently in the same positions as us with appropiate technology who could be trying to communicate with us and others like us.

Hence the popularity of the SETI project (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence). The equation brings many interesting topics to light such as how long intelligent civilisations may continue on living, with most estimates being of short duration. One hypothesise is that once nuclear power is developed by a civilisation, they will quickly destroy themselves through their new technology.

To date there have been 684 confirmed planets discovered orbiting a total number of 474 stars other than our Sun. With thousands more proposed from the Kepler mission awaiting comfirmation. More recently the Kepler mission has discovered the first planet known to be orbiting two stars.

The techniques involved in detecting these extra-solar (i.e. orbiting other stars than our Sun) objects favor the discovery of larger, more massive planets which have a more visible influence on their parent star. The techniques follow principles as simple as; does the parent star wobble?

If so, by how much and then knowing the distance to the parent star we can calculate the mass of the orbiting planet and orbital period, which in turn would give us the distance between the parent star and planet, using Kepler’s third law. This technique follows the principles of astrometry (basically astronomical geometry).

Then from analyzing the richness of the chemical environment of such systems through spectroscopy it is possible to say if at least one component of this system would be capable of sustaining life. Unfortunately, due to the large number of complexities which arise in the observational and analysis stages no one can say for sure if these planets are currently harbours of life.

However, all is not lost as we know already that our solar system contains life on a small out of the way planet amicably called Earth. So would it be possible for other lumps of rock in our Galaxy to host complex biological species? It is of popular opinion that yes, it is possible but due to the harsh environments in which they may exist they may not of had the possibility to evolve beyond microbial stages of evolution.

For example, if we ignore Mars for a minute and concentrate on the more probable hosts, the Gaililean satelites orbiting our local failed star Jupiter or Saturn’s Titan are good bets. It was initially thought that light was a neccessary ingredient for life to come into being. That was until the discovery of strange looking creatures living in the depths of our deepest darkest oceans close to hydrothermal vents.

This would lead a reasonable mind to believe that Europa, Ganymede or Titan may be hosts to such creatures thanks to their water ice crusts encasing their volcanic prone H2O oceans. How could we detect such life? Well as we know from studies of biological creatures back home we create a chemical diversity in our atmosphere which wouldn’t exist if we did not.

So we could look for gases such as methane trapped in ice crystals such as Clathrate Hydrates on the surface of these near by objects, with techniques such as infra-red reflection spectroscopy.

An exo-planet nicknamed ‘Snow White’ has been found to have a partially water ice surface with a possible light methane atmosphere. So in conclusion, no life has been currently detected aside from on planet Earth and it will prove difficult to find, but, we are off to a good start.

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Iran is claiming that that they have built the world’s first “flying saucer”, according to the official state-run Iranian news agency.  The news agency asserted that the craft was unveiled to Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamene in a special ceremony last month.  The unmanned craft is intended largely for aerial imaging.

The saucer, named ‘Zohal’, which translates to Saturn in Persian, is part of a “new generation of vertical flyers,” according to the Daily mail.  The original news release stated described the flying saucer in more detail.  The release read in part:

Zohal, designed and developed jointly by Farnas Aerospace Company and Iranian Aviation and Space Industries Association (IASIA), can be used for various missions, specially for aerial imaging.

The flying machine is equipped with an auto-pilot system, GPS (Global Positioning System) and two separate imaging systems with full HD 10 mega-pixel picture quality and is able to take and send images simultaneously.

Zohal uses a small, portable navigation and monitoring center for transmission of data and images and can fly in both outdoor and indoor spaces.

Not everyone is a believer, however.  A picture that accompanied the press release may not actually be a picture of the machine. Another press release by the Iranian Students’ News Agency may be a more accurate depiction of the craft.

“It is equipped with autopilot, image stabilizer and GPS and has a separate system for aerial recording with FULL HD quality as well as another system for aerial photography with 10 megapixel capability which can be sent and recorded simultaneously. The machine involves a small and portable land station with the monitoring capability and is able to fly indoors and outdoors,” according to the students’ press release.  “Easy transportation and launch and flying with less making noise are some of the advantages of the device. “

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A new study by the scientists at NASA‘s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA suggests that our galaxy may be more crowded than once thought.  The study discovered that one out of every 37 to one out of every 70 sun-like stars may have an Earth-like planet in its orbit, according to Space.com. These planets are at a position that liquid water could exist on the planet’s surface, according to the researchers.

These new calculations are based on data collected by the Kepler space telescope, which shocked the world in February by revealing 1,200 possible alien worlds, 68 of which were about the size of Earth. The spacecraft does so by looking for the dimming that occurs when a world transits or moves in front of a star.

What does the new data mean exactly?  “This means there are a lot of Earth analogs out there — two billion in the Milky Way galaxy,” researcher Joseph Catanzarite, an astronomer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told SPACE.com. “With that large a number, there’s a good chance life and maybe even intelligent life might exist on some of those planets. And that’s just our galaxy alone — there are 50 billion other galaxies.”

There could be billions of Earth-like planets just in the Milky Way Galaxy and that means that the likelihood of other life form is also greater.  After the researchers analyzed the four months of data in this initial batch of readings from Kepler, they determined that 1.4 to 2.7 percent of all sunlike stars are expected to have Earthlike planets — ones that are between 0.8 and two times Earth’s diameter and within the habitable zones of their stars.

There may be more life out there in these other galaxies.  The same scientists predict that about 12 Earth-like worlds will be discovered after three to four years of Kepler data is analyzed, according to Space.com. Four have already been seen just in the few months of data already released.  Kepler mission scientists have estimated that, altogether, there could be 50 billion planets in the Milky Way, though not all would be Earth-size worlds within the habitable zone of their local stars.

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An astrobiologist working at NASA’s Marshall Space Flying Center in Alabama has stated that he found alien life form.  In a recently published article in the Journal of Cosmology, Dr. Richard B. Hoover claims to have discovered a preserved alien life form residing inside a meteor.

Dr. Hoover began his study by deducing what type of meteor would be best suited to alien life form.  He narrowed his search to the CI class of carbonaceous chrondite meteors.   These meteors are rich in water, amino acids, and other organic compounds — a virtual pantry for a microorganism.  Picking the most ideal type of CI meteorite — CI1 optimized his chances, but narrowed his pool of available samples.  It is believed that only nine such meteorites exist on earth.  Dr. Hoover was able to obtain one of the few meteorites.  After smashing a piece of the meteorite, he then scanned the result dust and fragments, using scanning-electron microscopes and field emissions electron-scanning microscopes.  He found what appeared to be a fossilized bacterium.  The identified specimen appears remarkably similar to the bacteria Titanospirillum velox, a sulfur-loving archaebacteria, which was discovered in 1999 mud samples from Spain.

The meteorite was reportedly broken under sterile conditions.  Still, some skeptics argue that the meteorite could have been contaminated.  The meteorite was collected in the frigid reaches of Antarctica immediately after their observed fall.  The fact that they were collected so quickly limits the possibility that indigenous microbes contaminated them.  The possibility of atmospheric contamination still remains, though.

Dr. Hoover believes that this is not a case of contamination.  He is convinced that he has become the first human to record a scientifically verifiable encounter with an alien being.  He states in a recent interview, “I interpret it as indicating that life is more broadly distributed than restricted strictly to the planet Earth. This field of study has just barely been touched — because quite frankly, a great many scientist would say that this is impossible.”

In the published study, Dr. Hoover writes an accompanying note encouraging others to review his work.  “Given the controversial nature of his discovery, we have invited 100 experts and have issued a general invitation to over 5,000 scientists from the scientific community to review the paper and to offer their critical analysis. No other paper in the history of science has undergone such a thorough vetting, and never before in the history of science has the scientific community been given the opportunity to critically analyze an important research paper before it is published.”

Dr. David Marais, an astrobiologist at NASA’s AMES Research Center states, “It’s an extraordinary claim, and thus I’ll need extraordinary evidence.”

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Serbian air traffic controllers reported that a female-sounding alien spoke to them in a cat-like language.  The mysterious object – which they believe was a high-speed UFO –also burst onto flight monitors over the remote Russian city of Yakutsk, the Daily Mail reported.

The UFO rapidly changed directions in the sky and reached speeds of 6000 miles per hour according to the aviation workers.  Surrounding planes were traveling significantly slower.  The UFO was logged at a height of 64,895 feet above sea level and appeared to interfere with aviation frequencies.

They repeatedly tried to make contact to the mysterious object.  “I kept hearing some female voice, as if a woman was saying mioaw-mioaw all the time,” one air traffic controller told the pilot of a passing Aeroflot flight.  The UFO was automatically designated as “00000″ as it did not have a flight number.

On footage posted on You Tube, the air traffic controllers’ communications to a Russian plane were disrupted by interference from the UFO.   The footage was first posted last month but it is unclear when it was taken. A shot of the airport did not appear to show any snow which is normal for eight months a year in Yakutsk.  At one point, the UFO is shown moving away from Yakutsk at a rapid pace before turning and heading back toward the city.

This is the translated conversation from the footage posted on You Tube.

CONTROLLER: /delivers info/
PILOT: There is bad connection here. Repeat please.
CONTROLLER: /repeats info/
PILOT: It’s hard to get it. Keep flying on 11100 meters.
CONTROLLER: It’s a connection check out. How do you hear me?
PILOT: Much better. But there was muttering before. It seemed like another channel laid over.
CONTROLLER: Got you. /says info again/
PILOT: Can’t get you, can’t hear.

Then the controller starts checking out connection.

PILOT: Ok, I hear you now. There was this strange meowing female voice interfering with the frequency.
CONTROLLER: When did you hear it? In which time interval?
PILOT: All the time from the very beginning when our communication started.

Airport officials have not commented yet on the alleged UFO.

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Sammy Hagar, most well known for his stint as lead singer of Van Halen, has published a memoir detailing his days as a rock star.  However, the most notable portion of Red: My Uncensored Life in Rock is not about groupies, fights, or drugs.  It is about alien abduction.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee has a section in his memoir that recounts some strange dreams about UFOs that Hagar had as a youngster.  Hagar also reports in his book that he believes he may have been “manipulated” in some way by a force not of this Earth, if not abducted by aliens.

In an interview with MTV Hive about the memoir, Hagar goes into more detail about his belief in aliens and alien abduction.  “People say there’s no other life in the universe. But you know how big the universe is? It’s freakin’ huge! If we’re really the only ones out there, that’s scarier to me than thinking there are aliens,” Hagar told MTV.

Hagar stated in the interview, and in his book, that he believes he may have been abducted by aliens.   In his book, he describes a dream where he was connected to aliens.  “I saw a ship and two creatures inside of this ship… And they were connected to me, tapped into my mind through some kind of mysterious wireless connection,” the passage reads in part. Only, he believes it was real and not just a dream.  Speaking in the interview about the experience, Hagar insists it was not a dream.  “It was real. [Aliens] were plugged into me. It was a download situation. This was long before computers or any kind of wireless. There weren’t even wireless telephones. Looking back now, it was like, “Fuck, they downloaded something into me!” Or they uploaded something from my brain, like an experiment. “See what this guy knows.”

He also describes another strange experience that he did not include in his book.  “Another thing happened when I was about four that I didn’t put into the book. One time I saw what I considered to be, well, at the time I thought it was a car with no wheels. We lived out in the country and I saw this thing floating across a field, creating this big dust storm. I threw rocks at it and shit. And I don’t know what happened after that.”

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The Voynich Manuscript, a book that was found nearly a century ago, has mystified scientists and experts for years.  Written in what seems to be an “alien” language, with some characters resembling Latin letters, and others unlike anything used in any known language.  One mystery surrounding the book, which is owned by Yale, was recently solved.

Last month, according to the University of Arizona, the book was carbon-dated by a team of scientists from the University and it can now be determined when the mysterious book was written.  Carbon-14 dating suggests the book was created between 1404 and 1438, nearly a century earlier than originally thought.  However, much of the rest of the book remains a mystery.

The University of Arizona press release explains the mystery with the book in more detail.  “This tome makes the “DaVinci Code” look downright lackluster: Rows of text scrawled on visibly aged parchment, flowing around intricately drawn illustrations depicting plants, astronomical charts and human figures bathing in – perhaps – the fountain of youth. At first glance, the “Voynich manuscript” appears to be not unlike any other antique work of writing and drawing.”

“Is it a code, a cipher of some kind?” asked Greg Hodgins, who led the UA team.  “People are doing statistical analysis of letter use and word use—the tools that have been used for code breaking.  But they still haven’t figured it out,” Hodgins said.

The parchment pages of the Voynich manuscript, which was discovered by a book dealer in an old chest outside of Rome in 1912, were made from animal skin and therefore are able to be carbon dated.  Hodgins, a chemist and archaeological scientist was able to use carbon dating on tiny bits of the pages extracted with a scalpel.  Dating the book from the early 15^th century does not make it the oldest book, but it does make it older than the Gutenberg bible—the first book printed with modern presses.

“There are many reasons why a manuscript would have been written in code at the time,” Hodgins explained, “fears of accusations of heresy or witchcraft among them. Then again, there is also the possibility that the manuscript doesn’t say anything at all. Some of the top researchers in the field lean toward the latter explanation, particularly since it has proven impossible using the latest computer technology to decipher the script.”

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