Adam Frank, a professor of astrophysics at the University of Rochester, wondered if space civilizations existed. Can we discover their industrial effects in space?
Frank said in an article at the Atlantic site - that the thinking of the supposed space objects has always been a problem for those looking for intelligence outside the Earth search for extraterrestrial intelligence "SETI".
Until recently, Citi's focus was on beacons of space objects, which suggests that a space object deliberately transmits certain signals, but this traditional method includes guesses that may be wrong (such as space objects are interested in our existence and want us to know it exists) .
"There's a whole new way to look. Instead of looking for beacons that send satellite signals, City researchers now want to look for unintended technological effects of industrial space civilizations," he said.
An example of these unintended technological effects could be contaminants in a distant planet, or a large artificial structure orbiting a planet.
The best way to find these effects is to search for byproducts that can be observed from the activities that are deemed necessary for all civilizations.
| Space civilizations must extract energy to conduct their activities (Pixabee) |
Extraction of energy
For example, industrial civilizations, by their very nature, must extract energy from the surrounding environment to do their work and remain operational.
In a creative search published last year, space scientist Manaspi Lingam and Abi Loeb wondered what effects could be derived from a civilization that boosted its world by harvesting solar energy on a planetary scale.
It is easy to imagine a civilization covering a part of its world with solar panels (for example, on Earth we will do so in the Sahara).
According to Lengam and Loeb, the widespread deployment of solar technology will leave a footprint in the light emanating from the planet's surface.
Lengam and Loeb believe that large-scale deployments of solar collectors would also change the way sunlight is reflected from a planet outside the solar system, which would ultimately be a sign of a space civilization.