It’s always interesting to ponder who or what might be living out in the Universe, but there is one problem we must overcome to meet or communicate with aliens. This is a research area I’m excited to watch progress and eagerly await results.Īs of writing this article, sadly no alien laser signals have been found yet. To search for these mysterious flashes in the night sky, we need speciality instruments in locations around the globe, which are currently being developed and deployed. This is because even here on Earth we’re investigating laser communication and laser-propelled light sails. Some astronomers hypothesise that intelligent beings might use massive lasers to communicate or even to propel spacecraft. The SETI Institute is also looking for signals that would be best explained as “space lasers”. This is a part of the non-profit research organisation, the SETI Institute. This project is currently upgrading the hardware and software on the original dish, including the ability to target several stars at once. This unique facility is another exciting project, able to search for signals every day of the year. Hiding away in the Cascade Mountains north of San Francisco sits the Allen Telescope Array, the first radio telescope built from the ground up specifically for SETI use. Using telescopes around the globe, from the 64-metre Murriyang Dish (Parkes) here in Australia, to the 64-antenna MeerKAT array in South Africa, the search is one of epic proportions. Over a ten-year period a total amount of US$100 million will be invested in this effort, and they have a mighty big task at hand.īreakthrough Listen is currently targeting the closest one million stars in the hope of identifying any unnatural, alien-made radio signals.

This is one of many projects funded by US-based Israeli entrepreneurs Julia and Yuri Milner, with some serious dollars attached.

One of the most exciting searches to date is Breakthrough Listen, the largest scientific research program dedicated to looking for evidence of intelligent life beyond Earth.

NRAO, CSIRO, MeerKAT Listening to the stars Byrd Green Bank Telescope, 64m Murriyang (Parkes) Radio Telescope, 64-antenna MeerKAT array. The three radio facilities used in the Breakthrough Listen Initiative.

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