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What would be the best signal to announce we are here?
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Bob DeWoody Send message Joined: 9 May 10 Posts: 3387 Credit: 4,182,900 RAC: 10 |
In another thread I mentioned the possibility that man made nuclear explosions might be a way to get ET's attention. I haven't been able to find anything in the way of a study regarding what the range of detection would be and how big the explosion would have to be. So would a nuclear detonation be detectable from a star system say 50 LY away? And would it be recognised as something other than a natural event. Bob DeWoody My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events. |
rob smith Send message Joined: 7 Mar 03 Posts: 22219 Credit: 416,307,556 RAC: 380 |
The problem with explosions is that they are very short lived. A better signal are the continuous broadcast signals of ever increasing magnitude that we have been pumping out for the last hundred years or so. Being continuous they are easy to get a fix on, work out how far away the source is, and the state of technological development our planet is at. Bob Smith Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society) Somewhere in the (un)known Universe? |
Bob DeWoody Send message Joined: 9 May 10 Posts: 3387 Credit: 4,182,900 RAC: 10 |
A lot of what I have read and seen claims that our radio signals are so weak as to blend into the background noise within a light year or two. I was thinking that a blast might be an attention grabber and would be noticed even if not being looked for. We have enough nuclear material that blasts at regular intervals could be maintained for quite a while. Bob DeWoody My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events. |
tullio Send message Joined: 9 Apr 04 Posts: 8797 Credit: 2,930,782 RAC: 1 |
What about radioactive fallout? I was charged to measure the radioactivity of air at the Trieste University Institute of Physics during the Soviet nuclear testing in the early Sixties. The data were never made public. Tullio |
Bob DeWoody Send message Joined: 9 May 10 Posts: 3387 Credit: 4,182,900 RAC: 10 |
What about radioactive fallout? I was charged to measure the radioactivity of air at the Trieste University Institute of Physics during the Soviet nuclear testing in the early Sixties. The data were never made public. That's why I proposed that these explosions should happen on the far side of the moon. No fallout on the earth. Bob DeWoody My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events. |
tullio Send message Joined: 9 Apr 04 Posts: 8797 Credit: 2,930,782 RAC: 1 |
A rather risky idea, also forbidden by international treatises. But haven't we exploded several nuclear weapons in the atmosphere? If They are watching us they should see them in a few years. Tullio |
Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34053 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18 |
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aka_Sam Send message Joined: 1 Aug 07 Posts: 471 Credit: 1,637,878 RAC: 0 |
Just my 2c worth but methinks firing off a nuke or two, even from 50 ly away, is a pretty aggressive way of saying 'howdy-nieghbor'. :P |
Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34053 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18 |
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ML1 Send message Joined: 25 Nov 01 Posts: 20323 Credit: 7,508,002 RAC: 20 |
Aaaarrrgggghhh!!;) Is that yet again one of the last utterances of Agrajag as it yet again meets some demise?... :-P More seriously: We are sending out a very powerful signal loud and clear that we are here for how we are so very obviously unnaturally rapidly polluting our atmosphere. That is also a signal that we are optically looking for to find ET for the exoplanets discovered by the Kepler mission... (Astrospectroscopy can detect the pollution in the atmosphere of exoplanets light years away...) Keep searchin', Martin See new freedom: Mageia Linux Take a look for yourself: Linux Format The Future is what We all make IT (GPLv3) |
William Rothamel Send message Joined: 25 Oct 06 Posts: 3756 Credit: 1,999,735 RAC: 4 |
Astrospectroscopy can detect the pollution in the atmosphere of exoplanets light years away...) I suspect it would be more fruitful to look for Oxygen, water and then maybe Nitrogen. Our "pollutants" are a tiny tiny part of our atmosphere unless you consider water vapor to be a pollutant. If we could, in fact, detect CO-2 it might signal that there is the possiblity of abundant plant life. |
Bob DeWoody Send message Joined: 9 May 10 Posts: 3387 Credit: 4,182,900 RAC: 10 |
And global warming could be attributed to variations in the sun's output not to mention the possibility of long term natural cycles. I wasn't proposing that we actually set off nuclear explosions on the far side of the moon as I am not convinced we should be attracting attention at all. But I really doubt that what we are doing to the planet would ever get noticed unless someone was actively looking for us. Bob DeWoody My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events. |
ML1 Send message Joined: 25 Nov 01 Posts: 20323 Credit: 7,508,002 RAC: 20 |
And global warming could be attributed to variations in the sun's output not to mention the possibility of long term natural cycles. ... Could be but isn't and was long ago shown not to be so. Far too small an effect for what we're seeing at present. Which is precisely why such rapid change at present would "give the game away" to aliens looking at our atmospheric signature to show that there are non-natural events underway. That is, artificial pollution indicating industrialisation. (As for the "can't be Man" delusion, that's one for the DENIER's thread.) Keep searchin', Martin See new freedom: Mageia Linux Take a look for yourself: Linux Format The Future is what We all make IT (GPLv3) |
Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34053 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18 |
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Wm McTurnan Send message Joined: 4 Feb 14 Posts: 2 Credit: 123,618 RAC: 0 |
My guess is they already know we're here but too primitive in development to respond. I figure any civilization capable of traversing the stars are in the least hundreds of years ahead of us in technology. |
William Rothamel Send message Joined: 25 Oct 06 Posts: 3756 Credit: 1,999,735 RAC: 4 |
We are sending out a very powerful signal loud and clear We are not. How far out do you think our radar and TV could be heard by a civilization as advanced as we are. In a few years we will probably realize that there is no one close enough to pick this up. |
William Rothamel Send message Joined: 25 Oct 06 Posts: 3756 Credit: 1,999,735 RAC: 4 |
My guess is they already know we're here but too primitive in development to respond. If they knew we were here they could respond. As could we. |
Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34053 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18 |
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Wm McTurnan Send message Joined: 4 Feb 14 Posts: 2 Credit: 123,618 RAC: 0 |
I imagine any civilization capable of traversing the stars already know we are here. Whether they can or will contact us is the question I guess. |
Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34053 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18 |
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