Practicing for Alien Contact: A New Experiment Sends a Fake Alien Signal from Mars to Earth (Free ESL Lesson)

Lesson made on May 23, 2023

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Reading Lesson:

The SETI Institute, which stands for Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, is trying a new experiment. They've made up a pretend alien signal and they're sending it from a spaceship around Mars back to Earth. The goal is to see if we can figure out what it means.

Scientists have always wondered why we haven't heard from aliens yet. Maybe they've tried to contact us, but we didn't understand their messages. This project, named "A Sign in Space", is like a practice session. Scientists from all over the world will try to decode the pretend signal. This could help us be ready if aliens really do try to talk to us one day.

This project gives people a chance to think about what it would be like to get a message from aliens. The signal will be sent to Earth by the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, a spacecraft from the European Space Agency.

Three big radio telescopes, including one in California, will listen for the signal. When they hear it, they will share the data with everyone, and the project will officially begin. There's also an online community where scientists and regular people from around the world can talk about the project.

This experiment is a chance for people to learn how scientists would work together to understand a message from aliens. It will take more than just knowledge of astronomy to communicate with extraterrestrial life.

Comprehension Questions:

Speaking and Writing Activities:

- Discuss these questions with a partner or a small group.
- Choose one topic and write a response to it. Show your writing to a classmate or teacher.

1. Why do some people believe in aliens? Do you agree with them?

2. If aliens made contact with Earth, what do you think they would say and how would people react?

3. Have you ever seen a movie about aliens? Describe what happens in the movie.

More Reading Practice:

What is the SETI Institute?

SETI stands for the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. They are looking for signs of intelligent life in the universe. They use powerful telescopes to listen for signals from space. They believe that if there is intelligent life out there, these beings might be trying to communicate just like we do on Earth.

SETI researchers also study planets far away from our own to see if they might have conditions suitable for life. They look for planets that are just the right distance from their star, not too hot and not too cold, where water could exist. Water is very important because all life forms we know of need it to survive.

While we haven't found any alien life forms yet, SETI's work is still very important. By searching for life beyond Earth, we learn more about our own planet and our place in the universe. Maybe one day we will receive a signal from alien beings.

Why haven't we found intelligent life in the universe?

There are several reasons why we haven't found intelligent life yet. The first one has to do with the massive size of the universe. There are billions of galaxies out there, each with billions of stars and even more planets. Even with our most advanced technology, we have only just started to explore the outer edges of our own solar system, which is only a very tiny part of our own galaxy. Finding another intelligent life form in the vastness of the universe is a very difficult task.

Another reason is time. The universe is about 13.8 billion years old. In that immense span of time, civilizations might have risen and fallen before we even had a chance to detect them. It's also possible that other intelligent species are not at the same technological level as we are. They might not be able to send or receive signals, or maybe they communicate in ways we can't yet understand or detect.

And then there's the question of what we mean by "intelligent" life. We tend to think of intelligence in human terms, but life on other planets might be very different from us. It might not use language or technology the way we do, and it might not even be based on the same kinds of biological processes. So even if we did come across signs of alien life, we might not recognize it.

Finally, there's the possibility that intelligent life is actually quite rare or even unique to Earth. Some scientists argue that a lot of specific conditions needed to align for intelligent life to evolve on Earth, and the chances of that happening elsewhere might be slim.

Helpful Links:

SETI Institute Official Website

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