Many a scientist has speculated as to the prospect of extraterrestrial life eventually making its way to earth. But billionaire aerospace entrepreneur Robert Bigelow is convinced that alien life is already among us, and that many people just don’t realize it yet.

Bigelow, who’s reportedly invested millions of dollar into UFO research over the years, told 60 Minutes recently that there’s absolutely no doubt in his mind that aliens are here now. He claims to be the premiere voice on the issue, with more insider knowledge than anyone else.

“I’m absolutely convinced – that’s all there is to it,” Bigelow stated during the interview with CBS correspondent Lara Logan. “There has been and is an existing presence, an ET presence [on earth].”

Bigelow’s resume on space-related issues is extensive, his Bigelow Aerospace company having worked directly with NASA to build inflatable habitats for the International Space Station (ISS). But his real focus seems to be on aliens, a topic into which he is heavily invested both mentally and financially.

“I spent millions and millions and millions – I probably spent more as an individual than anybody else in the United States has ever spent on this subject [aliens],” he’s quoted as saying.

While Bigelow hasn’t actually admitted to encountering any UFOs or aliens directly – at least as far as he knows – he’s insistent about their presence. It’s perhaps the biggest driving factor behind his space investment endeavors, after all, though he was clear to explain that one doesn’t have to travel too far to find aliens. (RELATED: More new on UFOs is available at UFOs.News)

“You don’t have to go anywhere,” he added during the interview. “It’s just, like, right under people’s noses.”

Bigelow doesn’t care if people think he’s crazy for talking about aliens

Despite the fact that the subject of aliens is getting increasingly more exposure, Bigelow’s claims about them run him the risk of being classified by the public as a tin foil hat wearing kook. But he isn’t all that concerned about it, his convictions about the issue running far deeper than other people’s opinions or general consensus.

Even NASA, which Bigelow has worked with closely, isn’t onboard with his claims. The government space agency denies the existence of aliens, though it maintains a partnership with Bigelow Aerospace for the purpose of building inflatable space structures like the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, also known as “BEAM.” This aluminum and soft fabric structure was designed to pack into a small space so it could be efficiently launched and delivered to the ISS.

Once attached to the ISS, this flexible habitat was successfully inflated to become the first expandable human-rated habitat ever to be flown into space – a major boon for Bigelow’s company. Over the next two years, the module will be assessed by astronauts who will retrieve sensor data and monitor conditions inside the unit, including how well it blocks out space radiation. Back in May of last year right after the launch occurred, NASA released an amazing time-lapse video of BEAM’s expansion that you can watch here.

Bigelow’s expectation is that humans will eventually flee the earth using some of the technologies that his company is developing, including these inflatable-style space habitats. In fact, his entire business approach is gambling on this, which could explain the narrative he’s pushing about aliens living among us.

“Bigelow is doing good things for space exploration,” writes Seth Shostak for NBC News. “And if he wants to spend millions of his own dollars investigating the possibility that other intelligent creatures are prowling our planet, that’s his prerogative. But I hope he’ll let us know if he’s found something convincing.”

Sources:

DailyMail.co.uk

NBCNews.com