Telescope in WA’s Murchison Region makes groundbreaking search for alien life in other galaxies

Are we alone in the universe? It’s one of the greatest mysteries in science, and a radio telescope 300km north-east of Geraldton just got us a little closer to the answer. Spoiler alert: ET didn’t phone home. The Murchison Widefield Array consists of 8192 antennas, spread across more than 30sqkm on Wajarri Yamaji land and has previously allowed radio astronomers to peer deep into the cosmos to learn about the earliest moments of the universe. Now scientists from the Curtin University node of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research have used the telescope to search for alien life in other galaxies. While the research team failed to detect evidence of alien signals or “technosignatures”, it was hailed as a success. Earlier attempts to detect intelligent life in the universe have focused on specific galactic sources, but the MWA survey marked the first time a low-frequency search had been conducted across more than 2800 galaxies at once. John Curtin Distinguished Professor Steven Tingay, the ICRAR deputy executive director and MWA director, said the study would help focus future searches. “The MWA continues to open up new ways of exploring the universe for intelligent civilizations and technosignatures, while using the same data to study the astrophysics of stars and galaxies,” Prof. Tingay said. The research was conducted in collaboration with the SETI Institute and the findings were published in The Astrophysical Journal.