Scientists tell us where the closest intelligent civilization to us is located
14 September 2025 06:08
The closest technological civilization to us in the Milky Way may be located at a distance of about 33 thousand light-years, and to exist simultaneously with humanity, it must exist for at least 280 thousand years, but rather millions of years. Such conclusions were presented by Manuel Scherf and Helmut Lammer from the Institute for Space Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences at the joint EPSC-DPS 2025 conference in Helsinki.
This is reported by the Europlanet portal, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
The key role in the calculations was played by the conditions necessary for the emergence and sustainability of complex life. The planet must have plate tectonics, which regulates the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and an atmosphere rich in oxygen and nitrogen. Without this, the biosphere will degrade sooner or later, and a technological civilization will not be able to emerge.
Scientists have found that an atmosphere with a carbon dioxide content of about 10% could support the biosphere for up to 4.2 billion years. However, the emergence of a technological civilization requires at least 18% oxygen: without it, neither the existence of large animals nor open fire, which is necessary for metallurgy, is possible.
By comparing the time of the biosphere’s existence and the rate of evolution on Earth, the researchers concluded that for at least one civilization to emerge simultaneously with ours, its species must live for at least 280 thousand years. For ten civilizations to exist simultaneously, the average life expectancy of each must exceed 10 million years.
“The probability of extraterrestrial civilizations in our galaxy is very small and directly depends on how long they can exist,” explained Sherf.
Nevertheless, he said, the search should not be stopped: “Even if the chances are small, the only way to find out the truth is to search. If we don’t find anything, it will confirm our calculations, and if we do, it will be one of the greatest scientific discoveries in history.”
