All-sky radio SETI

Abstract

Over the last decade, Aperture Arrays (AA) have successfully replaced parabolic dishes as the technology of choice at low radio frequencies -good examples are the MWA, LWA and LOFAR. Aperture Array based telescopes present several advantages, including sensitivity to the sky over a very wide field-of-view. As digital and data processing systems continue to advance, an all-sky capability is set to emerge, even at GHz frequencies. We argue that assuming SETI events are both rare and transitory in nature, an instrument with a large field-of-view, operating around the so-called "water-hole" (~ 1-2 GHz), might offer several advantages over contemporary searches. Sir Arthur C. Clarke was the first to recognise the potential importance of an "all-sky" radio SETI capability, as presented in his book, Imperial Earth. As part of the global SKA (Square Kilometre Array) project, a Mid-Frequency Aperture Array (MFAA) prototype known as MANTIS (Mid-Frequency Aperture Array Transient and Intensity-Mapping System) is now being considered as a precursor for SKA-2. MANTIS can be seen as a first step towards an "all-sky" radio SETI capability at GHz frequencies. This development has the potential to transform the field of SETI research, in addition to several other scientific programmes.

Strategies for the Detection of ET Probes Within Our Own Solar System

“…This Mid-Frequency Aperature Array Transient and Intensity-Mapping System (MANTIS) would be built adjacent to the SKA-1 in South Africa. It would consist of many thousands of individual antennas, each sensitive to almost the whole sky at L-band, and whose signals would be combined and beam formed in the back end [34].…”

Bayesian approach to SETI

“…The discovery of thousands of extrasolar planets [3] and * claudio.grimaldi@epfl.ch † geoff.w.marcy@gmail.com the inferred astronomical number of Earth-like planets in the Galaxy [2] have recently stimulated a significant revival of SETI initiatives. The "Breakthrough Listen" project [1,4], the largest and most comprehensive search ever, and the planned "Cradle of Life" program of the Square Kilometre Array radiotelescope [5,6], together with impressive progress in detector technology [7,8], offer unprecedented opportunities for a systematic investigation in the vast domain of the SETI search space.…”