How top scientists think we’ll finally hear from aliens – and why it could happen in the next decade

It seems that with every new piece of information we learn about the vastness of the universe, the chances of contact with an intelligent alien life form decrease.

But there has been a shift in consensus in recent years among some top scientists, who now think this is possible in the next decade.

The optimism stems largely from NASA’s upcoming mission to Jupiter’s moon in 2030, which is believed to be a habitable ocean world.

But other alien hunters believe contact will be made by signals traveling through the universe.

The reason for this is that astronomers have been sending broadcasts into space since the 1970s, the former containing information about the chemicals of life and the structure of DNA, along with Earth’s location in our solar system.

The SETI project has been hunting for extraterrestrial life since the 1980s, and one of the group’s leaders is betting that one of the signals will be a winner in 2036.

Intelligent aliens in 2036

Seth Shostak, 80, has been a senior astronomer at the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) project for almost a quarter of a century and is putting it all into the The human race will hear from intelligent aliens in 2036.

The guess is based on the steady improvements in telescope technology and computer hardware.

In a recent Reddit AMA, Shostak said, “The trend of improving hardware – especially computers – has continued unabated. I’m still betting on a signal in 2036.’

The astronomer has also argued that recent research has shown 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 is perhaps the strongest argument for life in space. Because if it isn’t there, there is something very exceptional about what happened here on earth. While that is not ruled out by the data, it does seem a bit self-centered,” Shostak said.

The failure to find extraterrestrial life has not stopped SETI from preparing for this moment.

‘There is a document. Basically, it says check the signal to make sure it’s actually alien,” Shostak said.

“Then make it known to the world and consult internationally before sending a reply.”

An ‘answer’ to NASA by 2029

Signals sent by NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) to the Pioneer 10 satellite launched in 1972 may have already reached aliens — and we could receive a response before the end of this decade.

The DSN currently consists of three radio dishes in Barstow, California, Madrid and Canberra, ensuring that no spacecraft ever falls out of communication and sending powerful, targeted broadcasts into space.

Researchers discovered that a white dwarf star located 27 light-years from Earth is in the path of signals sent to Pioneer 10 by the DSN.

If there is a planet around the white dwarf, we could hear back as early as 2029 – although no planet has been detected yet.

Other transmissions sent by the DSN to other probes could be answered in the 2030s, researchers say.

In 2002, NASA sent radio wave transmission to the Pioneer 10 probe in a routine protocol to send data and ensure communications were established.

This signal also reached a star about 27 light-years from our planet, because the transmission spreads when they come into contact with an object.

Researchers at the University of California (UC) hope the signal was intercepted by aliens calling back to Earth.

Pioneer 10’s transmissions will encounter 222 stars by 2313.

The earliest we can expect a returned transmission is in 2029,” the UC team said.

Aliens could use human techniques

When telescopes on Earth discover worlds beyond our solar system, known as exoplanets, astronomers look for “transiting” planets moving in front of their sun.

But aliens that have received radio signals from Earth could use the same technique to detect us, astronomers have suggested.

Aliens orbiting 2,000 stars might even see Earth’s shadow as we move in front of the sun, astronomers have suggested.

There are 1,715 star systems that Earth could have seen in the past 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 Earth as a transit planet.”

‘Detectable by the end of the decade’

Scientists believed that Earth’s radio signals had ‘dimmed’ as radio receivers developed from the 1950s onwards.

But a 2023 study by researchers at the University of Manchester suggested that the increasing number of satellites will make Earth ‘easily detectable’ in the near future – with the number of satellites expected to reach 100,000 by the end of the decade.

The team focused on radio signals that might be detectable from nearby stars, including Barnard’s Star, just six light-years from Earth.

Professor Mike Garrett, team leader on the project 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 – a claim I always dispute.

‘While it is true that we have less powerful TV and radio transmitters today, the proliferation of mobile communications systems around the world is enormous.

‘While each system individually represents relatively low radio power, the integrated spectrum of billions of these devices is significant.

‘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 portion of the spectrum; If the trend continues, we could become easily detectable by any advanced civilization with the right technology.”