How close is NASA to announcing if aliens exist? VERY CLOSE. Here's why

We could have our answer as early as 2020.

A viral article claims the hacker collective Anonymous predicts NASA is going to announce the discovery of alien life soon. Anonymous is correct, but they don't know anything the informed don't know. Here's what NASA said, what is means, and why you should be excited.

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) -- The decentralized hacker collective, Anonymous has released a video leaking the fact that NASA is about to announce the discovery of alien life. The evidence behind the video is a bit questionable, but the conclusion is correct.

In the video, a spokesperson wearing the iconic Guy Fawkes mask now associated with the movement begins by quoting, "Mankind is about to discover extraterrestrial life," according to the spokesman for the NASA committee for science.

The video quotes NASA Science Mission Directorate Professor Thomas Zurbuchen, "Our civilization is on the verge of discovering evidence of alien life in the cosmos."

The video then details the leads that NASA is following to discover life outside Earth, and the Solar System.

Anonymous is right, but not necessarily because of the quote from Zurbuchen. There is no evidence or indication that NASA has already discovered life, or is withholding information.

However, in October 2018, the next chapter in exploration will begin with the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. The telescope will be much more powerful than the Hubble and will be used to study the atmospheres of planets orbiting other stars.

These observations will allow scientists to assess the chemical composition of these planets' atmospheres, so they can search for biomarkers. Biomarkers are gasses that can only be produced by the presence of life on a planet, such as water vapor, oxygen, and methane.

Such a discovery may not tell us what kind of life is on the planet, but it will reveal to us if life exists outside our solar system. And that discovery could be less than two years away by now. By 2020, we could know the answer to one of the most ancient questions asked by humanity, are we alone in the universe?

The answer, no matter what it is, has implications for humanity. As Arthur C. Clarke once wrote, "Two possibilities exist: either we are alone in the universe, or we are not. Both are equally terrifying."

We will have our answer sooner than most people know.