NASA has undertaken an enthusiastic search for alien life, and, according to the hacker collective Anonymous, the agency is "on the verge" of confirming its existence.

That assertion was made in a video recently published to a YouTube channel affiliated with the group.

In support of its claim, Anonymous cites NASA's recent exploration efforts and statements made by Thomas Zurbuchen, a NASA associate administrator, during a congressional hearing in April.

The group quotes Zurbuchen as saying, in part, "Our civilization is on the verge of discovering evidence of alien life in the cosmos. Taking into account all of the different activities and missions that are specifically searching for evidence of alien life we are on the verge of making one of the most profound and unprecedented discoveries in history."

Of course, "on the verge" is relative.

While NASA has discovered a number of promising places to look for life, including Saturn's moon Enceladus and the newly found solar system TRAPPIST-1, which appears to have a handful of planets in the habitable zone, studies of those bodies are in their early stages, notes Newsweek.

Also, though Mars is believed to have once had conditions capable of supporting simpler life forms, proof of its past existence has, thus far, been elusive.

RELATED: Check out these alien-looking landscapes found on Earth:

35 PHOTOS Alien-looking, otherwordly landscapes found on Earth See Gallery Alien-looking, otherwordly landscapes found on Earth Dragon blood trees in rocky landscape, Homhil Protected Area, Socotra, Yemen Mysterious moving rocks at a playa in Death Valley national Park called The Race Track Turkey, Central Anatolia, Cappadocia, Unesco World Heritage Site, Uchisar village, the camel driver Fire crater, gas crater, Door to Hell Darvaza crater, Derweze or Darvaza, Karakum Desert, Dasoguz Province, Turkmenistan Kristal Icecave in BreiÃ°amerkurljÃ¶kul glacier in Iceland The Haleakala silversword (Argyroxiphium sandwicense subsp. macrocephalum) is a rare plant found only the island of Maui on the dormant Haleakala volcano.Silverswords live between 3 and 90 years or more. They flower once, sending up a spectacular flowering stalk, and then die soon afterward, scattering drying seeds to the wind. Flowering events can differ dramatically from one flowering season to the next. The reasons for that are not understood. Giant's Causeway on a cloudy day - Northern Ireland Take in Athabasca Glacier, Jasper, Alberta, Canada United States, Oregon, Dayville Moeraki rocks found on the east coast of new zealand High Angle View Of Grand Prismatic Spring In Yellowstone National Park Frozen methane bubbles at Abraham lake at sunrise with beautiful sky. A sand dune glows red at last light in this landscape image of the Namib Desert. Salar de Uyuni hexagons at sunset Colorful mountain in Danxia landform in Zhangye, Gansu of China. The enchanting pools of Pamukkale in Turkey. Pamukkale contains hot springs and travertines, terraces of carbonate minerals left by the flowing water. The site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Deep underground cave exploration of Karst cave 'Krizna jama', Slovenia. Roughly 8-9 km long, from 30 to 125 m deep, lots of chambers, siphons, corridors, small islands and roughly 40 lakes, stalactites, stalagmites and other specifical Karst rock formations. Geysir Dallol is volcano, Danakil desert, Ethiopia. Michigan, United States of America Snow covered wave taken during cold in Coyote Buttes North. Egypt, Baharija, White desert Cave halong bay The blue ice cave at lake Baikal This image was taken in the Fall of 2008 at Tufa State Park, Mono County, Mono Lake, California. This image is very rare as the lake water level is much higher now. I shot this at the cusp of dawn and no filters were used. Zabriskie Point with Panamint Range in distance, Mojave Desert. Mutant nature Zabriskie Point is a part of Amargosa Range located east of Death Valley in Death Valley National Park in California, United States noted for its erosional landscape. It is composed of sediments from Furnace Creek Lake, which dried up 5 million years ago long before Death Valley came into existence. Castildetierra Baobab trees (Adansonia Grandidieri) reflecting in the water under the milky Way, Morondava, Toliara province, Madagascar. (GERMANY OUT) Western Australia - Nambung National Park - limestone formations, called Pinnacles, at dusk (Photo by Mayall/ullstein bild via Getty Images) Fingal's Cave on the Scottish Inner Hebrides island of Staffa. Rocky cliffs reflected in the calm waters of Horseshoe Lake, Jasper National park, Alberta, Canada. Abstract nature of Lower Antelope Canyon. The canyon is part of a series of slot canyons on Navajo land in Arizona, USA. Sweden, Halsingland, Voxnan River at sunrise, winter Huang Shan, Anhui Province, China Nieve penitente is a spike or pillar of compacted snow or ice caused by differential melting and evaporation. Up Next See Gallery Discover More Like This HIDE CAPTION SHOW CAPTION of SEE ALL BACK TO SLIDE

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