Washington ( CNN ) -- The White House position on extraterrestrials is now clear : aliens have n't contacted Earth , but that does n't mean the U.S. government is n't looking for them . `` The U.S. government has no evidence that any life exists outside our planet , or that an extraterrestrial presence has contacted or engaged any member of the human race , '' wrote Phil Larson of the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy in a blog post on the White House website . The response went on to say that even though there is no proof that life exists outside Earth , `` that does n't mean the subject of life outside our planet is n't being discussed or explored , '' he said . The petitions were submitted through `` We the People , '' a White House initiative that promises a White House response to any petition that can garner 5,000 signatures in 30 days . This response by the White House satisfies the demands of two petitions , one of which garnered over 12,000 signatures . That petition called on the White House to `` formally acknowledge an extraterrestrial presence engaging the human race . '' `` Hundreds of military and government agency witnesses have come forward with testimony confirming this extraterrestrial presence , '' stated the petition . `` Opinion polls now indicate more than 50 % of the American people believe there is an extraterrestrial presence and more than 80 % believe the government is not telling the truth about this phenomenon . The people have a right to know . The people can handle the truth . '' According to the White House , however , `` there is no credible information to suggest that any evidence is being hidden from the public 's eye . '' But Larson indicated that a host of government agencies are working `` toward the goal of understanding if life can or does exist off Earth , '' including the Mars Science Laboratory , SETI , the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence and Kepler , the NASA spacecraft . And even though the White House was clear that there is no credible evidence that aliens have contacted earth , Larson did point out that the odds are in favor of extraterrestrial existence , but not contact . `` Many scientists and mathematicians ... have come to the conclusion that the odds are pretty high that somewhere among the trillions and trillions of stars in the universe there is a planet other than ours that is home to life , '' wrote Larson . `` However , that the odds of us making contact with any of them â€ ” especially any intelligent ones â€ ” are extremely small , given the distances involved . ''
The White House says extraterrestrials have not contacted the human race . The U.S. government says there 's no evidence of life outside our planet . Thousands sign a petition asking for a government response on alien contact . Many Americans believe in an extraterrestrial presence .