Sunlight and the Extinction of Gamma-Rays
Our ultimate cosmic destiny is to become dark matter. For now, let’s enjoy the light show while it lasts.
Avi Loeb
Quantum-Gravity Engineers of the Future May Find Local and Extraterrestrial Opportunities
Decades after a Quantum-Gravity theory will be discovered, there might be job advertisements for engineers who use it to build vehicles that would carry humans to the stars faster than imagined before.
Dark Matter and The “Unsung Heroes” of Our Cosmic Past
Dark matter is one of the "unsung heroes", that reflects our level of ignorance about our cosmic roots.
Survival of the Optimist: Designing Our Indefinite Future in Space
To paraphrase Darwin’s “survival of the fittest”, when it comes to our future in space, everything may hinge on “survival of the optimist.”
Could UAP Have Kinship to Our AI Systems?
If some UAPs represent extraterrestrial AI systems, perhaps their appearance in recent government data was triggered by us being on the verge of developing sentient AI systems.
NASA’s UAP Study: Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery
NASA's announcement that it will study unidentified aerial phenomena is a win-win for science, as it follows similar efforts by the DOD and civilian groups like the Galileo Project.
The Beginner’s Mind of Machine Learning
As advances in machine learning continue, we can expect to see fewer of the "beginner's mistakes" of its early experimental phase.
“Technological Selection” in the Race to Interstellar Space
We have become ever more technologically selective, a preparatory work to becoming adept in space, where technological selection rules.
With Age Comes Wisdom: Life’s Astronomical Puzzles
While humans have gleaned a tremendous amount of knowledge about the universe, there are several astronomical puzzles about our lives that remain mysterious.
Alleviating the Tyranny of the Rocket Equation Through Intergalactic Travel at Low Accelerations
Could there be new physics that suppresses the dreadful exponent of the rocket equation?
The Galactic Trading Card of Human Civilization
A curious civilization seeking to increase its scientific knowledge by exploring the unknown will win the Galactic contest of trading cards.
Interstellar Kites: Galactic Surfing on Light?
Here’s hoping that they are some interstellar environmentalists out there who have already started to clean our cosmic neighborhood.
Reflections On the First Congressional Hearing on Unidentified Aerial Objects in Half a Century
In the aftermath of Congressional hearing on UAP, it is clear governments and scientists must work together to determine their nature.
In the aftermath of Congressional hearing on UAP, it is clear governments and scientists must work together to determine their nature.
In the aftermath of Congressional hearing on UAP, it is clear governments and scientists must work together to determine their nature.
Fishing in Extraterrestrial Seas
The best way for humanity to garner respect from any potential extraterrestrial neighbors is to seek new knowledge through evidence.
How Can we Guide Our Life?
In the future, could an interactive artificial intelligence (AI) system answer questions for us, and carry the flame of life and consciousness?
Lunar Ranging: Detecting the Memory Effect from a Black Hole Merger at the Galactic Center
Permanent displacement between Earth and the Moon is detectable by the Lunar Ranging laser system, which monitors the Earth-Moon separation by measuring steadily the roundtrip travel time of light to the Moon.
The First Interstellar Meteor Had a Larger Material Strength Than Iron Meteorites
The first interstellar object to make its way to Earth may have had properties that exceeded even those of iron meteorites.
Scooping Interstellar Fragments from the Ocean Floor
On April 6, 2022, the U.S. Space Command tweeted a formal letter confirming a meteor as originating from outside the solar system.
Dark Matter: The Scientific Method and Understanding the Unseen
The popular cosmological paradigm supposes the existence of unseen matter known as “Cold Dark Matter”.
What is Dark Matter?
With questions like those surrounding dark matter, we should resist the temptation of explaining away anomalies based on past knowledge.
The Silence of Snow
Avi Loeb recaps several points of discussion from a recent meeting with journalist Leslie Kean, where they discussed the Galileo Project and the search for extraterrestrial life.
The Substitute for the Drake Equation in Extraterrestrial Space Archaeology
The likelihood of us finding extraterrestrial technological objects depends on our willingness to look for them, and not just on whether the extraterrestrials had sent them.
General Relativity Instead of Modified Gravity
The proper interpretation of recently acquired satellite data relies on Einstein's theory of general relativity, which still presents the best description of gravity as we know it.
Intelligent Communication: Understanding and Adaptation
There could be more than just distance that separates us from other intelligent life in the universe.
There could be more than just distance that separates us from other intelligent life in the universe.
There could be more than merely distance that separates us from other intelligent life that exists in our universe.
Communicating with Extraterrestrials
In this inaugural installment of "Our Cosmic Neighborhood", Avi Loeb gives us perspectives on the challenges presented by any future attempts at communication with extraterrestrials.
In this inaugural installment of "Our Cosmic Neighborhood", Avi Loeb gives us perspectives on the challenges presented by any future attempts at communication with extraterrestrials.
In this inaugural installment of "Our Cosmic Neighborhood", Avi Loeb gives us perspectives on the challenges presented by any future attempts at communicating with extraterrestrials.
The Search for ET: What Do the Best Scientists in the Milky Way Know?
An encounter with an ET culture would be a humbling experience, since we will have to admit that our modern science was developed only over the past century out of the 4.5-billion-years-long history of Earth.
The Milky-Way’s Gifts to Life Expectancy
We live in the gravitational potential well of the Milky Way galaxy, and therefore we age more slowly than the cosmos at large. By how much?
Mind the Gap: A Lesson in Cosmic Stoicism
If human beings ever locate and interact with an extraterrestrial civilization, how will we play 'realpolitik' with them?
Mysterious 18-minute Radio Pulses Are Not from “Little Green Men”
On January 26, 2022, a group of astronomers authored a report about mysterious radio pulses repeating periodically every 18.18 minutes from a source in the sky labeled GLEAM-X.
Stellar Engines: As Galaxies Emit Light, Their Expansion Reveals a Unique Phenomenon
Our observation of the behavior of galaxies reveals phenomena that have received surprisingly little attention in the scientific literature.
AI: Intelligent Adaptation, or Barbarian Duplication?
Once we begin sending our assets to other planets, what should be our goal? There are two basic choices: AI, or the way of the barbarian.
Extraordinary Evidence Requires Extraordinary Funding: The Search for Extraterrestrial Technology
Trying to catch extraterrestrial technology in our solar system requires a very expensive fishing rod.
Trying to catch extraterrestrial technology in our solar system requires a very expensive fishing rod.
Space is vast so sensitive telescopes and patience are needed for an interstellar fishing trip when catching extraterrestrial technology.
Virtual Reality Makes Us Egotistical, and Science Demands Humility
New scientific revolutions in our understanding of reality are not as flattering to our ego as their virtual versions.
New scientific revolutions in our understanding of reality are not as flattering to our ego as their virtual versions.
Virtual reality, tailored to match our wishful thinking, sways us away from the humility of gaining new scientific knowledge.
Dating the Next `Oumuamua and the Art of Cosmic Mating
"To rendezvous or not to rendezvous?", that is the billion-dollar question. Is it getting warm in here?
"To rendezvous or not to rendezvous?", that is the billion-dollar question. Is it getting warm in here?
During my routine morning jog in the woods, I saw four pairs of ducks swimming in a narrow...
The Fly Who Saw the Birth of The Galileo Project on Avi Loeb’s Porch
After the publication of my book “Extraterrestrial,” a few extraordinary guests visited the porch of my home with questions about it. A hypothetical fly on the wall might have wished for more.
After the publication of my book “Extraterrestrial,” a few extraordinary guests visited the porch of my home with questions about it. A hypothetical fly on the wall might have wished for more.
"I wish I was a fly on the wall of your porch over the past few months." Avi Loeb discusses the rise of the Galileo Project, and his search for life in the cosmos.
AI-Scientists May Usher in A Bright Future in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence
Scientific progress may accelerate when artificial intelligence (AI) will explore data autonomously, without the blinders imposed by human prejudice.
Scientific progress may accelerate when artificial intelligence (AI) will explore data autonomously, without the blinders imposed by human prejudice.
Refusal to admit anomalies as evidence that our knowledge base may have missed something important stems from our ego. AI won't make the same mistakes.