The SETI Institute, Berkeley SETI Research Center, and the International Center for Radio Astronomy Research have announced groundbreaking research using the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) in Western Australia.

Led by Dr. Chenoa Tremblay from the SETI Institute and Professor Stephen Tingay from Curtin University, this study is the first to search for signs of extraterrestrial technology in galaxies beyond our own, focusing on low radio frequencies around 100 MHz.

This innovative study utilized the MWA’s large field of view (FOV), enabling the team to observe approximately 2,800 galaxies in a single scan, with known distances for 1,300 of them.

Traditionally, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) has concentrated on detecting signals within our galaxy, the Milky Way. However, this new approach pushes the boundaries by extending the search to distant galaxies.

By focusing on these far-off galaxies, this research represents one of the most detailed searches for supercivilizations more advanced than ours.

For a civilization in another galaxy to send a detectable signal, it would require technology capable of harnessing the energy of its sun or even multiple stars within its galaxy.