It seems that with every new information we learn about the vastness of the universe, the probability of contacting an intelligent extraterrestrial life form decreases.
But in recent years there has been a change in consensus among some leading scientists, who now think it is possible within the next decade.
The optimism is largely due to NASA’s upcoming mission to Jupiter’s moon in 2030, which is believed to be a habitable ocean world.
But other alien hunters believe that contact will be made through signals traveling through the universe.
Scientists have spent their life’s work searching for life beyond our planet, but most importantly, humans will come into contact with extraterrestrials in the next decade. The idea largely stems from NASA’s upcoming mission to Jupiter’s moon in 2030 (pictured)
That’s because astronomers have been sending transmissions into space since the 1970s, with the former containing information about the chemicals of life and the structure of DNA, along with the location of Earth in our solar system.
The SETI project has been searching for extraterrestrial life since the 1980s and one of the group’s leaders is betting that one of the signals will be the winner in 2036.
Intelligent aliens by 2036
Seth Shostak, 80, has been the lead astronomer for the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) project for nearly a quarter of a century, and he’s betting all of that on The human race will hear from intelligent aliens in 2036.
The bet is based on the constant improvements in telescope technology and computer hardware.
In a recent Reddit AMA, Shostak said: ‘The trend of improving hardware, primarily computers, has continued unabated. I’m still betting on a signal for 2036.’
The astronomer has also argued that recent research has determined that there could be billions of Earth-like worlds in the universe, suggesting that it is highly unlikely that Earth is the only one with life.
«That may be the strongest argument in favor of life in space. Because, if there isn’t, there is something truly exceptional about what has happened here on Earth. Although the data doesn’t rule it out, it seems a little self-centered,” Shostak said.
Not having found extraterrestrial life yet has not stopped SETI from preparing for the moment.
Other extraterrestrial hunters predict that communication will be carried out through signals that will travel through the universe. That’s because astronomers have been sending transmissions into space since the 1970s.
‘There is a document. Briefly, it says, “check the signal to make sure it’s truly extraterrestrial,” Shostak said.
“Then announce it to the world and consult internationally before broadcasting a response.”
Seth Shostak has explained what will happen when we have news of extraterrestrials
An ‘answer’ to NASA by 2029
Signals sent by NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) to the Pioneer 10 satellite launched in 1972 could have already reached extraterrestrials, and we could receive a response before the end of this decade.
Currently, the DSN consists of three satellite dishes in Barstow, California, Madrid and Canberra, and ensures that no spacecraft is ever out of communication, sending powerful transmissions aimed into space.
Researchers discovered that a white dwarf star 27 light years from Earth is in the path of the signals sent by the DSN to Pioneer 10.
If there is a planet around the white dwarf, we could “hear an answer” as early as 2029, although no planet has yet been detected.
Researchers have said that other transmissions sent by the DSN to other probes could be responded to in the 2030s.
Signals sent by NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) to the Pioneer 10 satellite launched in 1972 could have already reached extraterrestrials, and we could receive a response before the end of this decade.
In 2002, NASA sent a radio wave transmission to the Pioneer 10 probe in a routine protocol to send data and ensure communication was established.
This signal also reached a star about 27 light years from our planet as the transmission spreads when they come into contact with an object.
Researchers at the University of California (UC) hope that the signal was intercepted by aliens calling back to Earth.
Pioneer 10 broadcasts will find 222 stars in 2313.
The earliest we can expect transmission to recover is 2029,” the UC team shared.
Aliens could use human techniques.
When telescopes on Earth detect worlds outside our solar system, known as exoplanets, astronomers look for “transiting” planets moving in front of their sun.
But aliens who have received radio signals from Earth could be using the same technique to detect us, astronomers suggested.
In fact, astronomers suggested that aliens orbiting around 2,000 stars could detect the “Earth’s shadow” as we move in front of the sun.
There are 1,715 star systems that could have seen Earth in the last 5,000 years, and another 319 stars will be able to do so in the next 5,000 years.
Astrophysicist Jackie Faherty of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City says these alien worlds will have “a front-row seat to finding Earth as a transiting planet.”
‘Detectable by the end of the decade’
Scientists believed that Earth’s radio signals had “faded” as radio receivers evolved starting in the 1950s.
But a 2023 study by researchers at the University of Manchester suggested that the increasing number of satellites will make Earth “readily detectable” in the near future; The number of satellites is expected to reach 100,000 by the end of the decade.
Astronomers suggested that aliens orbiting around 2,000 stars could detect the ‘Earth’s shadow’ as we move in front of the sun.
The team focused on radio signals that could be detectable from nearby stars, including Barnard’s Star, just six light years from Earth.
Professor Mike Garrett, project team leader and director of the Jodrell Bank Center for Astrophysics at the University of Manchester, said: “I have heard many colleagues suggest that the Earth has become increasingly radio silent in recent years. years, a claim I have always disputed.
‘While it is true that we have fewer powerful radio and television transmitters today, the proliferation of mobile communications systems around the world is profound.
“Although each system individually represents relatively low radio powers, the integrated spectrum of billions of these devices is substantial.
«Current estimates suggest that we will have more than a hundred thousand satellites in low Earth orbit and beyond before the end of the decade. Earth is already abnormally bright in the radio part of the spectrum; If the trend continues, we could become easily detectable by any advanced civilization with the right technology.”
