Technosignatures: Here’s how scientists are going to look for intelligent alien life
To date the search for alien life has been based on biosignatures – molecules or isotopes which would indicate the presence of ancient life – but new features could be the focus for this search in the future.
Searching for extraterrestrial intelligence has been a focus of mankind for more than a century, with astronomers in the early 1900s suggesting humanity might contact Martians using radio signals.
However alien civilisations may yet be flourishing in solar systems other than our own, and a new scientific paper from a researcher at the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (IAC) includes several “technosignatures” that could indicate the presence of these civilisations.