Did Aliens Already Land On Earth? | Unveiled

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Have Aliens Already Landed on Earth?</h4>

The search for alien life has led our gaze all over the universe. In the name of science, we’ve now charted immeasurably distant stars, whole galaxies that are millions of lightyears away from our own, and even black holes and pulsars in our unending quest for knowledge. But, actually, has the ultimate discovery… been right alongside us all along?

This is Unveiled, and today we’re answering the extraordinary question; have aliens already landed on Earth?

Do aliens exist? It’s the question at the heart of so many modern astronomical studies and alternate conspiracy theories. In terms of pure numbers, it seemingly does seem more likely than not that something other than life on Earth is out there. The universe is just too darn big for that not to be the case. The fact that we haven’t discovered alien life yet is an age-old head-scratcher, affectionately known as the Fermi Paradox. Whenever we move the action closer to home, however, the statistical probability of aliens arguably falls. With many onlookers suggesting that it’s highly unlikely that alien life would even know about us, let alone be here. In general, “Are there aliens on Earth?” is a far thornier, more controversial and more complex inquiry, then. And yet, according to a 2023 draft paper released in the US via the Pentagon… it still could be the case that they are already here.

The paper, titled “Physical Constraints On Unidentified Aerial Phenomena”, is presented by the Harvard astronomer and head of the Galileo Project, Avi Loeb, and the director of the DOD’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, Sean M. Kirkpatrick. Both are major players in the world of SETI (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) and in UFO and UAP research. In the six-page document, it’s outlined exactly how an alien civilization might’ve already reached Earth. The explanation begins with ‘Oumuamua, the first interstellar object to be detected passing through our solar system - when it was picked up by telescopes in Hawaii, in October 2017. Not only was it found that ‘Oumuamua came from interstellar space, however, it was also shown to be extremely unusual - with a long, thin, flat shape. It was apparently accelerating away from the sun, as well, contrary to how most other asteroids behave. For some, then, including Avi Loeb, it could be that ‘Oumuamua isn’t (and wasn’t) a naturally formed piece of rock. Instead, it might’ve been a piece of artificial alien technology.

The 2023 paper adds more color to that suggestion, however. Because, if ‘Oumuamua were an alien ship, then the next question is; what’s it doing here? Was it passing Earth on purpose, or by chance? And, given that it was already racing out of the solar system by the time we spotted it… then is it really the case that that one flyby will be all that comes of it?

For Loeb and Kirkpatrick, the answers could tie in with two other objects now suspected to have been interstellar, as well; IM1 and IM2. Interstellar Meteor 1 actually crashed through Earth’s atmosphere (and into the ocean) years earlier, in January 2014; Interstellar Meteor 2 burnt through the atmosphere in March 2017, about six months before ‘Oumuamua was sighted. It took time for the significance of both objects to be realized (which is why ‘Oumuamua still goes down as the first detected interstellar find) but Loeb and Kirkpatrick suggest that IM1 and 2 could be indicative of a far wider truth. Although the paper says that the objects (particularly IM2) are “unrelated”, the cases combined do give some serious food for thought. It’s further explained; “the coincidences between some orbital parameters of ‘Oumuamua and IM2 inspires us to consider the possibility that an artificial interstellar object could potentially be a parent craft that releases many small probes during its close passage to Earth”. That possibility is described as, “an operational construct not too dissimilar from NASA missions” - referring to how NASA might employ a lander from an orbiter, when exploring another moon or planet.

On the face of it, it’s a tactic that could certainly work. The small probes are then referred to as “dandelion seeds”, as it’s shown how they could easily be small enough to evade detection - even from our most advanced telescopes, like the James Webb. That said, they could still be one meter wide or more; i.e., they could still represent a substantial piece of machinery, while remaining unseen by us, their targets. And they might only ever be seen were they to burn up on entry into our atmosphere; an event that could easily be mistaken for a standard meteor shower. Or, that’s the theory, at least.

In the time since the draft paper was released, various doubts have been cast - including even over the interstellar nature of IMs 1 and 2, to begin with - although Loeb, especially, has given numerous interviews attesting to the fact that they surely did come from beyond our solar system. Either way, the paper does concede that we’re not currently being bombarded with interstellar material of any kind, explaining that; “for every interstellar Near Earth Object… there are a thousand solar system Near Earth Objects of the same size”.  Searching for the potential “dandelion seeds” of an alien arrival, then, is an extremely difficult task.

But what if this proposed dispersal of alien tech is really what’s happening? What does the new landscape of near Earth space look like? The paper describes how; “once an Earth-like planet is targeted, an interstellar device can plunge into its atmosphere. In principle, a multitude of tiny devices can be released from a mothership that passes near Earth”. It’s suggested that those would then slow down upon close approach to our planet (to avoid burning up) before pursuing their objectives wherever they land. According to the paper, though, it’s unlikely that their objectives would have anything to do with humankind. Given the time scales at play for interstellar travel, anything that does arrive will have needed to have left home millions of years before our species emerged. If it were the case, then, that ‘Oumuamua was a passing alien ship on some kind of reconnaissance mission… then the presence of humanity will most likely have been a surprise to it.

Finally, even were an alien ship to land on Earth, and even if that did go undetected by us, then could that mean that alien life is already here as a result? For Loeb and Kirkpatrick, probably not. “It is likely that any functional devices embedded in the Earth’s atmosphere are not carrying biological entities,” they say, “because these would not survive the long journey through interstellar space and its harsh conditions”. Instead, they propose that AI-driven vehicles are what we should really be expecting - referring to self-replicating Von Neumann probes, and devices capable of machine learning to adapt to their mission. This is something that humankind has also entered into with our own space programs - although on a much smaller scale. Almost all of the off-Earth missions we launch are piloted and conducted by robots and rovers. This way, there’s no danger of loss of life, there’s greater likelihood that any one mission can continue for a long time, and the payloads we send up can be much smaller. Most of what Loeb and Kirkpatrick suggest amounts to the same strategy, only far more advanced.

So, what’s your verdict? If aliens have arrived in the solar system, or even onto our planet, then is this how they’ve done it? A far off mothership depositing a mass of relatively tiny probes that, for the most part, remain wholly unnoticed by us. Might we already have seen this game plan in action, though? And, if it is possible, then where does that leave us in the grand scheme of the universe?

Today, we’ve never been in a better position to investigate the potential for alien life. We have countless telescopes dotted all over the world, and distributed out into space itself. They all provide a unique perspective of the surrounding cosmos, viewing it through different wavelengths of light and from different positions. And, when we combine all of that data into one, the true nature of what’s out there really starts to take shape. 

If we are being watched, then perhaps it’s only a matter of time before we find that out. If we have been breached, then we might soon come to realize exactly to what extent. But, for now, with the sky potentially awash with artificial seeds sent from far, far away… that’s how aliens might have already landed on Earth.