China might be able to do what no country has done before. At least that’s what Dr. Zaza Osmanov, an associate physics professor at the Free University of Tbilisi believes. A new radio telescope in China could detect massive swarms of self-replicating alien robots before they attack our planet.
Osmanov recently published a preprint paper that suggests how China’s new Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) might be able to detect swarms of hypothetical extraterrestrial devices called Von Neumann probes.
FAST is only a warning system
These devices, first postulated by mathematician John von Neumann, could be used by advanced civilizations to hunt for other living beings. As per the paper – first spotted by Universe Today – FAST might detect swarms of these devices, thanks to its radio spectral band.
Of course, an enormous swarm of alien robots would be a major topic of concern for human life. If it can self-replicate, it could consume every resource available to continue its reproduction. Detecting an alien swarm early would be very useful if we manage to encounter one.
Osmanov believes the telescope would be capable of doing exactly the same. However, FAST would only be able to act as an early warning system. It’d still depend on earthlings to actually deal with the threat. The paper is yet to be peer-reviewed for publications in an actual journal. Still, it’s an interesting hypothesis.
Other alien theories that could be true
Previously, Imperial College London quantum physicist Terry Rudolph said that alien civilizations might change the light coming off stars in order to make contact far away distances across the cosmos, similar to a series of interstellar smoke signals.
The physics of the ordeal gets dense, which makes sense if interstellar civilizations are constantly communicating via star systems. But the main idea is to use entangled photons from several stars to send across messages that appear to be random twinkling at any stargazer.
Michio Kaku, a theoretical physics professor at City College of New York, has warned humans about reaching out to extraterrestrial beings. “I think it’s a terrible idea,” Kaku said.
