Abstract The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) has a low probability of success, but it would have a high impact if successful. Therefore it makes sense to widen the search as much as possible within the confines of the modest budget and limited resources currently available. To date, SETI has been dominated by the paradigm of seeking deliberately beamed radio messages. However, indirect evidence for extraterrestrial intelligence could come from any incontrovertible signatures of non-human technology. Existing searchable databases from astronomy, biology, earth and planetary sciences all offer low-cost opportunities to seek a footprint of extraterrestrial technology. In this paper we take as a case study one particular new and rapidly-expanding database: the photographic mapping of the Moon's surface by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) to 0.5m resolution. Although there is only a tiny probability that alien technology would have left traces on the moon in the form of an artifact or surface modification of lunar features, this location has the virtue of being close, and of preserving traces for an immense duration. Systematic scrutiny of the LRO photographic images is being routinely conducted anyway for planetary science purposes, and this program could readily be expanded and outsourced at little extra cost to accommodate SETI goals, after the fashion of the SETI@home and Galaxy Zoo projects.

    Highlights ► Alien civilizations may have sent probes to our region of the galaxy. ► Any mission to the solar system would probably have occurred a very long time ago. The lunar environment could preserve artifacts for millions of years. ► Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter provides a photographic database to search for artifacts. ► Searching the LRO database would make an excellent educational project


    Zugriff

    Zugriff prüfen

    Verfügbarkeit in meiner Bibliothek prüfen

    Bestellung bei Subito €


    Exportieren, teilen und zitieren



    Titel :

    Searching for alien artifacts on the moon


    Beteiligte:
    Davies, P.C.W. (Autor:in) / Wagner, R.V. (Autor:in)

    Erschienen in:

    Acta Astronautica ; 89 ; 261-265


    Erscheinungsdatum :

    2011-10-29


    Format / Umfang :

    5 pages




    Medientyp :

    Aufsatz (Zeitschrift)


    Format :

    Elektronische Ressource


    Sprache :

    Englisch




    Searching for alien artifacts on the moon

    Davies, P.C.W. | Online Contents | 2013


    Searching for Alien Life Having Unearthly Biochemistry

    Jones, Harry | SAE Technical Papers | 2003


    EARTH-MOON SYSTEM AS A COLLECTOR OF ALIEN ARTEFACTS

    Arkhipov, A.V. | Online Contents | 1998


    Alien Mathematics

    DeVito, Carl L | Online Contents | 2010


    Artifacts

    Harris, Samantha | NTRS | 2009