Helen Sharman, first British astronaut in space, says there’s no doubting that aliens exist but that humans haven’t just gotten around to seeing them yet.
Sharman, who was first launched into orbit in 1991 as part of a Soviet project, spoke in an interview with UK Guardian on the experiences she amassed during her space trips over the years.
The 56-year-old cosmonaut is reported to have spent almost eight days in space aboard the Soyuz TM-12 and Mir space station, before returning to earth.
According to her, the vastness of space, as well as infinite possibilities that lie out there, is enough proof.
“Aliens exist, there’s no two ways about it. There are so many billions of stars out there in the universe that there must be all sorts of different forms of life,” Sharman said.
“Will they be like you and me, made up of carbon and nitrogen? Maybe not. It’s possible they’re here right now and we simply can’t see them.”
The chemist, who now works at Imperial College, London, also relished the sight of looking down at the earth from up high, adding that material goods held no more value to her once her crew flew past the globe.
“Being in space taught me that it’s people, not material goods, which truly matter. Up there we had all we needed to survive: the right temperature, food, and drink, safety,” she said.
“I gave no thought to the physical items I owned on earth Earth. When we flew over specific parts of the globe, it was always our loved ones we thought of down below us.”
Sharman, however, expressed her frustration at being referred to as the first British woman in space, rather than simply the first Briton.
It was gathered that the UK space agency had in 2013 described Tim Peake, who travelled to the International Space Station in 2015, as the country’s first official astronaut — and it did not go down well with Sharman.
“It’s telling that we would otherwise assume it was a man,” she said.
“When Tim Peake went into space, some people simply forgot about me. A man going first would be the norm, so I’m thrilled that I got to upset that order.”
Sharman’s assertion comes a few months after Micheal Collins, Apollo 11 astronaut, admitted that there was life outside earth.
Yes. #AskMichaelCollins pic.twitter.com/LriykT2im4
Advertisement— Michael Collins (@AstroMCollins) August 27, 2019
He said yes when asked on Twitter if he believed in life outside Earth.
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