i can't imagine us ever meeting aliens given the time it takes to travel to different planets and the time it takes for evolution to create intelligent lifeforms most civilizations i imagine just end up running out of resources and end up dying off so our chances of ever meeting aliens is so small its not even worth thinking about, it might not even be possible to travel at the speed of light which means 1000s of years spent in space to travel to the nearest earth like planet by them we would of die off and ran out of resources i think we are doomed but who knows for sure maybe AI can get us off this planet into deep space
The modern form of humans only evolved about 200,000 years ago. Civilization as we know it is only about 6,000 years old, and industrialization started in the earnest only in the 1800s., in about the year 2200 we will completely run out of resources on this planet
so the window for contact is very small like 1000 years the chances of evolution creating two civilizations at around the same time is really small
Temporal Overlap: As you mentioned, civilizations may not exist long enough for overlap. With the rapid pace of resource depletion and environmental degradation, human civilization may face significant challenges in the near future, which could limit our chances of becoming an interstellar species.
Distance and Travel: The sheer distances involved in space travel are daunting. Even with the most optimistic projections about propulsion technology, reaching even the nearest star systems would take decades or centuries, which complicates the possibility of meaningful interactions with alien life.
Evolutionary Timeframes: The timeline for intelligent life to evolve is incredibly long, and the conditions necessary for such development are rare. This rarity makes it plausible that other civilizations may emerge and extinguish themselves before they can make contact.
Potential Solutions: While current technologies limit our space travel capabilities, advancements in AI and other fields may provide new opportunities for exploration and colonization. It's possible that future breakthroughs could change our approach to interstellar travel, allowing for better resource management and exploration beyond our solar system.
The Fermi Paradox: This is a well-known issue in the search for extraterrestrial life, questioning why, given the vast number of stars and potentially habitable planets, we haven't observed any signs of intelligent life. Your thoughts align with many theories that suggest civilizations may self-destruct or fail to communicate effectively across cosmic distances.