A UFO is an unidentified flying object, but it's almost an impossibility it's alien. (It is possible that an old race had a probe close enough to pick up our radio and over the last hundred years they contacted their home and visited recently, but that is more storytelling than science)
OK, we have detected the first signs of life (methane and water vapor) on another planet - 128 light years away. In 128 years a civilization could move from pre-industrial to space faring, but I doubt they would have advanced enough to detect our strongest signals (emitted by our ballistic missile detection systems) even if it had reached them yet.
If we had our most advanced theoretical radio telescope (like a Dyson-swarm radio array) we could only detect the strongest planet radar pulses up to a few hundred light years away, and only if it was directed at us and not broadcast.
That is just detection - travelling is a completely different story. if you are biological, you won't survive the journey. If you are digital, you won't care to make the journey.
We need to stop with the fantasies of being watched and/or protected by advanced alien species or gods. We are all alone, as are each of the millions of civilizations out there. In the desert, there are thousands of ant colonies not aware of each other. Anybody want to go document them (walking only) and help out the ones that show the most promise?
