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The telescope systems use [[machine learning]] to detect peculiar types of UFOs – by sorting out for example "birds, balloons, drones, atmospheric events, aircraft and satellites from more mysterious sightings".<ref name="sciencefocus"/><ref name="guardianGabbatt">{{cite news |first1=Adam |last1=Gabbatt|title='Something's coming': is America finally ready to take UFOs seriously? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/05/ufos-america-aliens-government-report |access-date=29 May 2022 |work=The Guardian |date=5 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=David |first1=Leonard |title=2022 could be a turning point in the study of UFOs |url=https://www.livescience.com/ufo-study-turning-point-2022 |access-date=29 May 2022 |work=livescience.com |date=27 January 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Gritz |first1=Jennie Rothenberg |title=The Wonder of Avi Loeb |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/wonder-avi-loeb-180978579/ |access-date=29 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Mann |first1=Adam |title=Avi Loeb's Galileo Project Will Search for Evidence of Alien Visitation |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/avi-loebs-galileo-project-will-search-for-evidence-of-alien-visitation/ |access-date=29 May 2022 |work=Scientific American |language=en}}</ref><ref name="newatlasloeb"/> The data from a system of sensors will be fed to "state-of-the-art video cameras linked to software that will filter out objects of interest for the telescope to track".<ref name="SA-20210919"/>
The telescope systems use [[machine learning]] to detect peculiar types of UFOs – by sorting out for example "birds, balloons, drones, atmospheric events, aircraft and satellites from more mysterious sightings".<ref name="sciencefocus"/><ref name="guardianGabbatt">{{cite news |first1=Adam |last1=Gabbatt|title='Something's coming': is America finally ready to take UFOs seriously? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/05/ufos-america-aliens-government-report |access-date=29 May 2022 |work=The Guardian |date=5 February 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=David |first1=Leonard |title=2022 could be a turning point in the study of UFOs |url=https://www.livescience.com/ufo-study-turning-point-2022 |access-date=29 May 2022 |work=livescience.com |date=27 January 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Gritz |first1=Jennie Rothenberg |title=The Wonder of Avi Loeb |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/wonder-avi-loeb-180978579/ |access-date=29 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Mann |first1=Adam |title=Avi Loeb's Galileo Project Will Search for Evidence of Alien Visitation |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/avi-loebs-galileo-project-will-search-for-evidence-of-alien-visitation/ |access-date=29 May 2022 |work=Scientific American |language=en}}</ref><ref name="newatlasloeb"/> The data from a system of sensors will be fed to "state-of-the-art video cameras linked to software that will filter out objects of interest for the telescope to track".<ref name="SA-20210919"/>


The telescopes could be supplemented by [[radar]] systems that would "distinguish a physical object in the sky from a weather pattern or a mirage".<ref name="SA-20210919">{{cite news |last=Loeb |first=Avi |author-link=Avi Loeb |title=Astronomers Should be Willing to Look Closer at Weird Objects in the Sky - The Galileo Project seeks to train telescopes on unidentified aerial phenomena |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/astronomers-should-be-willing-to-look-closer-at-weird-objects-in-the-sky/ |date=19 September 2021 |work=[[Scientific American]] |access-date=19 September 2021 }}</ref><ref name="utWilliams"/> Moreover, like NASA,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Knapton |first1=Sarah |title=Nasa wants to turn satellites into alien hunters |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/07/23/nasa-plans-repurpose-space-satellites-hunt-aliens/ |access-date=3 November 2022 |work=The Telegraph |date=23 July 2022}}</ref> the project is looking into also using [[Earth observation satellite]]s, in particular data collected by miniature satellites by [[Planet Labs]].<ref name="guardianGabbatt"/>
The telescopes could be supplemented by [[radar]] systems that would "distinguish a physical object in the sky from a weather pattern or a [[mirage]]".<ref name="SA-20210919">{{cite news |last=Loeb |first=Avi |author-link=Avi Loeb |title=Astronomers Should be Willing to Look Closer at Weird Objects in the Sky - The Galileo Project seeks to train telescopes on unidentified aerial phenomena |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/astronomers-should-be-willing-to-look-closer-at-weird-objects-in-the-sky/ |date=19 September 2021 |work=[[Scientific American]] |access-date=19 September 2021 }}</ref><ref name="utWilliams"/> Moreover, like NASA for their UAP study,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Knapton |first1=Sarah |title=Nasa wants to turn satellites into alien hunters |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/07/23/nasa-plans-repurpose-space-satellites-hunt-aliens/ |access-date=3 November 2022 |work=The Telegraph |date=23 July 2022}}</ref> the project is looking into also using [[Earth observation satellite]]s, in particular data collected by miniature satellites by [[Planet Labs]].<ref name="guardianGabbatt"/>


Loeb has stated that so far SETI was mainly "predicated on the assumption that extraterrestrials communicate via radio waves, a technology we have used for just over a century and which advanced extraterrestrials may have long ago left behind", noting that a better strategy may be "to look for artefacts: alien tech".<ref name="sciencefocus"/> Astronomer Jason Wright affirms that "very little" of such searching is being done, but "artefact SETI" seems to "have got more traction lately".<ref name="sciencefocus"/> Artefacts may have been able to accumulate in the Solar System – like our "mailbox" – for 4.55 billion years.<ref name="sciencefocus"/>
Loeb has stated that so far SETI was mainly "predicated on the assumption that extraterrestrials communicate via radio waves, a technology we have used for just over a century and which advanced extraterrestrials may have long ago left behind", noting that a better strategy may be "to look for artefacts: alien tech".<ref name="sciencefocus"/> Astronomer Jason Wright affirms that "very little" of such searching is being done, but "artefact SETI" seems to "have got more traction lately".<ref name="sciencefocus"/> Artefacts may have been able to accumulate in the Solar System – like our "mailbox" – for 4.55 billion years.<ref name="sciencefocus"/>
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=== Study of interstellar objects like 'Oumuamua ===
=== Study of interstellar objects like 'Oumuamua ===
[[File:Space mission to intercept or rendezvous with the next ‘Oumuamua.png|thumb|400px|"Mining high-quality telescope data, e.g. from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory or from the Webb telescope to discover anomalous interstellar objects, and designing intercept or rendezvous space missions that that[sic] will identify the nature of interstellar objects that do not resemble comets or asteroids, like ‘Oumuamua"<ref name="2209.02479"/>]]
[[File:Space mission to intercept or rendezvous with the next ‘Oumuamua.png|thumb|400px|"Mining high-quality telescope data, e.g. from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory or from the Webb telescope to discover anomalous interstellar objects, and designing intercept or rendezvous space missions that that[sic] will identify the nature of interstellar objects that do not resemble comets or asteroids, like ‘Oumuamua"<ref name="2209.02479"/>]]
[[File:IKAROS solar sail.jpg|thumb|300px|According to Loeb, observational data indicates Oumuamua could be a solar sail;<ref name="utnitrogen"/><ref name="utWilliams"/> and solar sail technology could be a way to intercept such an object with a probe, as e.g. [[Project Lyra]] suggests.]]
[[File:IKAROS solar sail.jpg|thumb|300px|According to Loeb, observational data indicates Oumuamua could be a [[light sail]];<ref name="utnitrogen"/><ref name="utWilliams"/> and solar sail technology could be a way to intercept such an object with a probe, as e.g. [[Project Lyra]] suggests.]]


The project plans to search for, characterize and study [[interstellar object]]s (ISO) like the peculiar [[Oumuamua]] detected in [[2017]].<ref name="newatlasloeb"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Loeb |first1=Abraham |title=On the Possibility of an Artificial Origin for `Oumuamua |url=https://arxiv.org/abs/2110.15213 |website=arXiv:2110.15213 [astro-ph, physics:physics] |access-date=2 November 2022 |date=12 March 2022}}</ref> They intend to use astronomical surveys like the [[Vera Rubin Observatory]] so that such objects can be identified more quickly, and to design a space mission so a probe could intercept it and gather close-up data.<ref name="newatlasloeb"/><ref name="sciencefocus"/><ref name="astronomynadis"/> The team intends to develop software that "will analyze data collected from the Vera Rubin Observatory".<ref name="spaceDobrijevic"/> It is thought that when the observatory commences its Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), "it will be able to detect ISOs entering our Solar System at a rate of a few per month".<ref name="utWilliams"/>
The project plans to search for, characterize and study [[interstellar object]]s (ISO) like the peculiar [[Oumuamua]] detected in [[2017]].<ref name="newatlasloeb"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Loeb |first1=Abraham |title=On the Possibility of an Artificial Origin for `Oumuamua |url=https://arxiv.org/abs/2110.15213 |website=arXiv:2110.15213 [astro-ph, physics:physics] |access-date=2 November 2022 |date=12 March 2022}}</ref> They intend to use [[astronomical survey]]s like the [[Vera Rubin Observatory]] so that such objects can be identified more quickly, and to design a space mission so a probe could intercept it and gather close-up data.<ref name="newatlasloeb"/><ref name="sciencefocus"/><ref name="astronomynadis"/> The team intends to develop software that "will analyze data collected from the Vera Rubin Observatory".<ref name="spaceDobrijevic"/> It is thought that when the observatory commences its Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), "it will be able to detect ISOs entering our Solar System at a rate of a few per month".<ref name="utWilliams"/>


In collaboration with [[Alan Stern]], principal investigator of NASA's [[New Horizons]] mission, they have received funding to develop such a space mission concept.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Siraj |first1=Amir |title=Spy Satellites Confirmed Our Discovery of the First Meteor from beyond the Solar System |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/spy-satellites-confirmed-our-discovery-of-the-first-meteor-from-beyond-the-solar-system/ |website=Scientific American |access-date=2 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref>
In collaboration with [[Alan Stern]], principal investigator of NASA's [[New Horizons]] mission, they have received funding to develop such a space mission concept.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Siraj |first1=Amir |title=Spy Satellites Confirmed Our Discovery of the First Meteor from beyond the Solar System |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/spy-satellites-confirmed-our-discovery-of-the-first-meteor-from-beyond-the-solar-system/ |website=Scientific American |access-date=2 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref>
Line 120: Line 120:


=== Criticism ===
=== Criticism ===
Astronomer at the [[SETI Institute]], [[Seth Shostak]] has made has compared his organization's and broader UFO-unrelated SETI efforts with the Galileo Project, describing his preferred approach as "studying unknown fauna in the rainforest" and the latter or searching for aliens in Earth's atmosphere as "hoping to find mermaids or unicorns", with there being a large difference between the two approaches.<ref name="sciencecrit"/> In contrast, Shostak also stated that "people who should be grateful for his effort" and that he is "grateful that [Loeb] has the freedom—and the guts—to go where few would dare to go".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shostak |first1=Seth |title=Harvard&rsquo;s Avi Loeb Thinks We Should Study UFOs&mdash;and He&rsquo;s Not Wrong |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/harvard-rsquo-s-avi-loeb-thinks-we-should-study-ufos-mdash-and-he-rsquo-s-not-wrong/ |access-date=2 November 2022 |work=Scientific American |language=en}}</ref>
Senior astronomer for the [[SETI Institute]], [[Seth Shostak]] has made has compared his organization's and broader UFO-unrelated SETI efforts with the Galileo Project, describing his preferred approach as "studying unknown fauna in the rainforest" and the latter or searching for aliens in Earth's atmosphere as "hoping to find mermaids or unicorns", with there being a large difference between the two approaches.<ref name="sciencecrit"/> In contrast, Shostak also stated that certain "people [...] should be grateful for [Loeb's] effort" and that he is "grateful that [Loeb] has the freedom—and the guts—to go where few would dare to go".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shostak |first1=Seth |title=Harvard&rsquo;s Avi Loeb Thinks We Should Study UFOs&mdash;and He&rsquo;s Not Wrong |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/harvard-rsquo-s-avi-loeb-thinks-we-should-study-ufos-mdash-and-he-rsquo-s-not-wrong/ |access-date=2 November 2022 |work=Scientific American |language=en}}</ref>


Astrobiologist Caleb Scharf stated that the Galileo Project has "intermingled legitimate scientists with" what he assessed to be "fringe" people.<ref name="sciencecrit">{{cite news |first1=Keith |last1=Kloor|title=Why is a Harvard astrophysicist working with UFO buffs? |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/why-is-harvard-astrophysicist-working-with-ufo-buffs |access-date=10 September 2022 |work= [[Science (journal)|Science]] |language=en}}</ref> Some are worried that [[astronomy]] and the [[search for extraterrestrial intelligence]] (SETI) are getting "undermined" by projects like it.<ref name="sciencecrit"/>
Astrobiologist Caleb Scharf stated that the Galileo Project has "intermingled legitimate scientists with" what he assessed to be "fringe" people.<ref name="sciencecrit">{{cite news |first1=Keith |last1=Kloor|title=Why is a Harvard astrophysicist working with UFO buffs? |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/why-is-harvard-astrophysicist-working-with-ufo-buffs |access-date=10 September 2022 |work= [[Science (journal)|Science]] |language=en}}</ref> Some are worried that [[astronomy]] and the [[search for extraterrestrial intelligence]] (SETI) are getting "undermined" by projects like it.<ref name="sciencecrit"/>

Revision as of 19:30, 3 November 2022

This article is about the project to study UFOs. For the navigation satellites, see Galileo (satellite navigation). For the Jupiter probe project, see Galileo project. For astronomy education resource, see Project Galileo.

The Galileo Project is an international scientific research project to systematically search for extraterrestrial intelligence or extraterrestrial technology on and near Earth and to identify the nature of anomalous Unidentified Flying Objects/Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UFOs/UAP).

It was launched in 2021 by Harvard University astrophysicist, Avi Loeb, shortly after the ODNI UFO report (prepared by the U.S. Intelligence), which reported sightings of aircraft or other devices apparently flying at mysterious speeds or trajectories, and a 3 June 2021 speech by the head of NASA, Bill Nelson, in which he stated scientific analysis of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena detected by a multitude of instruments was needed.[1][2][3] On 5 June, Loeb emailed NASA to suggest such a scientific project but received no reply upon which he launched the project on his own on 26 July 2021 with the help of donations.[1][2][4][5]

The non-profit project is searching for extraterrestrial technological equipment, which can be considered to be technosignatures, including gathering new data about peculiar UFOs with dedicated optimized unclassified sensor systems.[6][7]

Overview

The project aims to use existing and new telescopes to systematically look for artifacts in Earth's orbit, interstellar objects, and unexplained craft, sometimes called "anomalous aerial vehicles" (AAV),[8][9] in Earth's atmosphere. Research into UFOs, including ufology, has often been criticized for working with or providing only little or low-quality data, especially as it is often claimed that "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence". The project finds that for gathering evidence, one first needs to (proactively) look[10][11] and aims to address the data-quality issue by setting up new unclassified scientific sensor systems to gather high-quality data – possibly including "extraordinary evidence". It will make the collected data publicly available to scientific scrutiny as well as publish papers with "transparent" scientific analysis in peer-reviewed scientific journals.[12][13][2][14][15] Avi notes that "people in the military or in politics are not trained as scientists, and should not be asked to interpret what they see in the sky", may not want to release related information to the public and shouldn't need to be relied upon.[2][10][16][17] The project uses an agnostic (or "secular"[7] or "unbiased, empirical inquiry")[18][19] approach by which no potential explanations – including those that are considered to be unlikely by some experts – are rejected a priori but data is gathered and scientifically investigated to, based on the results, develop any conclusions.[20][21][5]

Its two other main avenues of research are searching for "two further types of potential extraterrestrial technological signatures with the use of AI": 'Oumuamua-like interstellar objects, and non-manmade artificial satellites.[22][23][24][13]

The project's name refers to Galileo Galilei whose discoveries that implied that the contemporary geocentric worldview at the time is faulty were first considered fringe and met by resistance, with similarly large implications for contemporary dominant worldviews as potential discovery of local or nearby extraterrestrial life – and to dare to look instead of neglecting stigmatized potential research topics for being "not worth studying", as in the project's motto, "daring to look through new telescopes".[2][14][21][19][5]

Over 100 scientists worldwide are involved in the project.[1][15][25]

Activities

Study of UFOs

"Constructing new telescope systems to infer the nature of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP), similar to those mentioned in the ODNI report (ODNI 2021) to the US Congress"[24]

The aim is to set up a series of telescopes that will use optical and infrared video cameras, and radio and audio sensors, to monitor the sky around the clock for objects that are not natural or manmade, and use artificial intelligence to classify and analyse them. Its first telescope was installed on the roof of the Harvard College Observatory in 2022.[1][16] It was reported to start operating in summer of 2022 and more sensor systems are planned to be deployed worldwide, possibly in a networked way.[15][26][16][27] In September 2022, it was reported that the project should begin collecting observations in January[28] and Loeb has stated in an online post on 24 October that instruments designed by the Galileo Project are "by now collecting new high-quality data".[29][clarification needed]

The telescope systems use machine learning to detect peculiar types of UFOs – by sorting out for example "birds, balloons, drones, atmospheric events, aircraft and satellites from more mysterious sightings".[1][11][30][31][32][13] The data from a system of sensors will be fed to "state-of-the-art video cameras linked to software that will filter out objects of interest for the telescope to track".[17]

The telescopes could be supplemented by radar systems that would "distinguish a physical object in the sky from a weather pattern or a mirage".[17][5] Moreover, like NASA for their UAP study,[33] the project is looking into also using Earth observation satellites, in particular data collected by miniature satellites by Planet Labs.[11]

Loeb has stated that so far SETI was mainly "predicated on the assumption that extraterrestrials communicate via radio waves, a technology we have used for just over a century and which advanced extraterrestrials may have long ago left behind", noting that a better strategy may be "to look for artefacts: alien tech".[1] Astronomer Jason Wright affirms that "very little" of such searching is being done, but "artefact SETI" seems to "have got more traction lately".[1] Artefacts may have been able to accumulate in the Solar System – like our "mailbox" – for 4.55 billion years.[1]

A goal of the project is to capture "new crisp images with better instruments than have ever been used by civilians".[17] While relevant sensors are not only photographic cameras, Loeb stated in early 2022 that a high-resolution image of a UFO could be taken within two years.[34][35]

Study of interstellar objects like 'Oumuamua

"Mining high-quality telescope data, e.g. from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory or from the Webb telescope to discover anomalous interstellar objects, and designing intercept or rendezvous space missions that that[sic] will identify the nature of interstellar objects that do not resemble comets or asteroids, like ‘Oumuamua"[24]
According to Loeb, observational data indicates Oumuamua could be a light sail;[36][5] and solar sail technology could be a way to intercept such an object with a probe, as e.g. Project Lyra suggests.

The project plans to search for, characterize and study interstellar objects (ISO) like the peculiar Oumuamua detected in 2017.[13][37] They intend to use astronomical surveys like the Vera Rubin Observatory so that such objects can be identified more quickly, and to design a space mission so a probe could intercept it and gather close-up data.[13][1][2] The team intends to develop software that "will analyze data collected from the Vera Rubin Observatory".[19] It is thought that when the observatory commences its Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), "it will be able to detect ISOs entering our Solar System at a rate of a few per month".[5]

In collaboration with Alan Stern, principal investigator of NASA's New Horizons mission, they have received funding to develop such a space mission concept.[38]

The project may trace its origins back to 2017 when its founder, Loeb, first got excited about the topic and gained substantial public attention after the first known interstellar object, ’Oumuamua, was discovered and displayed highly unusual properties and behavior. Loeb investigated and elaborated these anomalies and proposed that it could be a kind of extraterrestrial technology in scientific journals, many media appearances and a book, Extraterrestrial: The First Sign of Intelligent Life Beyond Earth.[16][4][5]

The Interstellar Object Studies branch is led by Amir Siraj, a Harvard astrophysicist who frequently collaborates with Loeb and co-discoverer of one or two (see below) interstellar objects.[36][39][5]

In 2022, Siraj and Loeb reported the discovery of an additional candidate interstellar meteor, CNEOS 2017-03-09, in a preprint using the same fireball catalog as they used for CNEOS 2014-01-08 (see below). They find that the implied material strength of the two objects (these are the highest and third-highest of the catalog's 273 fireballs) suggests that interstellar meteors "come from a population with material strength characteristically higher than meteors originating from within the solar system".[40][41]

Deep-ocean expedition to recover CNEOS 2014-01-08 fragments

Further information: CNEOS 2014-01-08
"Coordinating land or ocean expeditions to study the nature of interstellar meteors, like CNEOS 2014-01-08"[24]

The project is planning a deep-ocean expedition to retrieve small fragments of interstellar meteor CNEOS 2014-01-08, which "appears to be rare both in composition and in speed" and is not ruled out to be "extraterrestrial equipment",[42] using a magnetic sled on the seafloor of the impact region off the coast of Papua New Guinea.[43][44][45][46][47] The interstellar object was identified as an interstellar object by members of the Galileo Project Siraj and Loeb, before the project was established and confirmed by the United States Space Command in April 2022.[48][49][50]

In a September 2022 online post, Loeb announced project's planned expedition has been fully funded.[51]

Search for non-human artificial satellites

The project intends to systematically search for non-manmade artificial satellites (or semi-artificial satellites or artifacts on them) in Earth's orbit – for example by designing algorithms for telescopes to recognize and filter orbiting objects and using modern sky surveys.[13][52]

An object in a geosynchronous orbit may have been there for many millions of years and both intact material, as well as debris from degraded probes, could be detected even if they have undergone multiple collisions during this period.[52] As any "high-albedo objects are moving, spinning and emitting reflections from time to time", it should be possible to "confirm their existence through customized searches of modern data". The project can search for "these glinting events more effectively than was possible with other surveys".[53]

Members

The team includes scientists who as of 2021 work on a voluntary basis from Caltech, Cambridge University, Harvard, Princeton, Stockholm University, the University of Tokyo, and other institutions.[2] The (core) research team consists of:

  • Avi Loeb
  • Garry Nolan
  • Amir Siraj[14][36][39]
  • Frank Laukien
  • Angelique Ahlström
  • Jensine Andresen
  • Gaspar Bakos
  • Maya Burhanpurkar
  • Shelley Cheng
  • Carol Cleland
  • Richard Cloete
  • Alex Delacroix
  • Sergei Dobroshinsky
  • Natasha Donahue
  • Carson Q. Ezell
  • Nathan Galliher
  • Kaylie Hausknecht
  • Kevin Heng
  • Michael Hercz
  • Thiem Hoang
  • Joe Hora
  • Nia Imara
  • Ezra Kelderman
  • Eric Keto
  • Nicholas M. Law
  • Creon Levit
  • Michelle Lin
  • Anthony Lux
  • Javier Martín-Torres
  • Eric Masson
  • Andy Mead
  • Gary Melnick
  • Amaya Moro-Martin
  • Mitch Randall
  • Vikram Ravi
  • Lorene Rosenberg
  • Forrest Schultz
  • Darryl Seligman
  • Anowar J. Shajib
  • Alan Stern
  • Steven Stetzler
  • Matthew Szenher
  • Timothy Tavarez
  • Edwin L. Turner
  • Jacques Vallée
  • Ambuj Varshney
  • Beatriz Villarroel
  • Wesley Andres Watters
  • Eric Weinstein
  • Maria-Paz Zorzano

The project also lists "Affiliated professionals who offer useful expertise and input to the Research Team",[54] and members of a "Scientific Advisory Board" and a "Philanthropic Advisory Board".[55]

Funding

Its activities are funded by donations – $1.8 million as of 2021.[12] The funders include Frank Laukien, CEO of Bruker Corporation and William A. Linton, founder of Promega Corporation, both listed on the project's Philanthropic Advisory Board. The donations are reported to be unconditional and philanthropic.[1][6][5][20][56][16][3] Further funding that covers the costs of an expedition to retrieve fragments of an interstellar object was announced in September 2022.[51]

Loeb has stated that around $100 million would be needed to fully realise its project of identifying the nature of UAP.[1][27][57] Loeb has pointed out that research of dark matter is a topic that he suggests to be "just as bizarre as aliens and far less relevant to daily human life"[16] and that $100 million are only two percent of the Large Hadron Collider's "$5bn budget" and an even smaller fraction of Elon Musk's Space X project "valued at around $100bn".[27] The creation of an interstellar object interceptor mission would be more expensive and was estimated to cost $1bn.[1]

Reception and impact

The project gained substantial mainstream media coverage,[58] was applauded by many, including scientists,[26][59] and gained traction on social media and in online communities of people interested in UFOs. Despite this or broad public interest, there also have been criticisms or concerns and doubts about the prospects.[60][16][59] A NBC News article describes the project as "exactly the kind of research many have called for after the release of the Pentagon's intelligence report in June [2021]".[16]

Criticism

Senior astronomer for the SETI Institute, Seth Shostak has made has compared his organization's and broader UFO-unrelated SETI efforts with the Galileo Project, describing his preferred approach as "studying unknown fauna in the rainforest" and the latter or searching for aliens in Earth's atmosphere as "hoping to find mermaids or unicorns", with there being a large difference between the two approaches.[57] In contrast, Shostak also stated that certain "people [...] should be grateful for [Loeb's] effort" and that he is "grateful that [Loeb] has the freedom—and the guts—to go where few would dare to go".[61]

Astrobiologist Caleb Scharf stated that the Galileo Project has "intermingled legitimate scientists with" what he assessed to be "fringe" people.[57] Some are worried that astronomy and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) are getting "undermined" by projects like it.[57]

Some astronomers have reportedly criticized claims by the project's lead scientist for "insufficient" evidence to "support his bold conjectures about alien life".[62]

Loeb has stated that at a minimum the "Galileo Project will gather rich data sets that may foster the discovery of – or better scientific explanations for – novel interstellar objects with anomalous properties, and for potential new natural phenomena or terrestrial technology explanations for many presently inexplicable UAP".[13]

Commentary, integration and implications

It has been called an example of an "increasing diversity of state and non-state space actors seek[ing] to contribute to the overall endeavor of the search for extraterrestrial life", next to "a private mission to search for signs of microbial life in Venusian clouds", and a privately-funded search for extraterrestrial communicative signals, Breakthrough Initiatives. The study suggested that the "global nature of this serious issue calls for proactive science diplomacy interventions to anticipate future scenarios involving diverse actors and settings" such as for work on post-discovery phases and the potential cultural impact of extraterrestrial contact,[63] especially as a successful encounter with or detection of such objects may "enable instant contact without a significant delay in communication time" as would be the case in a detection of an artificial radio signal. According to Loeb, any engagement could have implications for the future of humanity and "should not be left to the spontaneous whims of a small team of researchers" with there being "no current international agreement" on relevant guidelines.[7] There is a similar study into UAP by NASA which was launched in 2022. However, the study, which Loeb welcomed as a gratifying "win-win" development that shares the project's scientific mission narrative,[64] is only looking at unclassified data while Loeb believes that "most of the interesting data from the past is classified".[65][66]

If the project results in a legitimate announcement that humanity has, reliably and unambiguously, discovered alien life – e.g. by attributing one unidentified object to an extraterrestrial technological origin – it may be one of the biggest moments in human history and would have major implications for humanity such as for its contemporary worldviews.[7][3][5] Loeb has argued that humanity is not ready to adopt a sense of what he calls "cosmic modesty" and that this could change if the project detects "relics" of more advanced civilizations. According to him, "Our galactic neighbors will not disappear if we ignore them, in much the same way that the Earth-sun system was under no obligation to satisfy the self-centered notion of geocentrism".[67] Loeb postulates that if we find that we "are not the smartest kid on the cosmic block, it will give us a different perspective" – such as the way we think about our place in the universe,[27][10][3] for example with relevance to religions,[68][11] which may often consider humans unique or exceptional.

Furthermore, the project intends to "change the intellectual landscape of UAP studies by bringing them into the mainstream of credible scientific inquiry."[17]

The project has been described as an active effort in space archaeology[52][53] (as well as "interstellar archaeology" by Loeb himself)[69][62] and as a project of the Search for Extraterrestrial Artifacts (SETA).[2]

See also

References

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  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Nadis, Steve. "The Search for Alien Artifacts Begins". Discover Magazine. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d Andersen, Travis. "'Are we the smartest kid on our cosmic block?' Harvard astronomer launches Galileo Project to examine UFO reports - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  4. ^ a b Shimano, Mihiro. "Harvard professor launches new project to discover unidentified aerial phenomena". boston.com. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Williams, Matt (28 July 2021). "A New Plan to Search for Extraterrestrial Artifacts at Earth and Across the Solar System". Universe Today. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  6. ^ a b Yang, Maya (27 July 2021). "Galileo Project: scientists to search for signs of extraterrestrial technology". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
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  8. ^ Cull, Monica. "What Are UAPs And What Do We Know About Them So Far?". Discover Magazine. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  9. ^ Pappas, Stephanie (12 March 2018). "Declassified Military Video Shows 'UFO' Off East Coast". livescience.com. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  10. ^ a b c Gilbert, Asha C.; Pitofsky, Marina. "Harvard professor leading research on existence of UFOs and alien civilizations". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
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  13. ^ a b c d e f g Irving, Michael (27 July 2021). "Controversial astronomer outlines plans to search for alien technology". New Atlas. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
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  38. ^ Siraj, Amir. "Spy Satellites Confirmed Our Discovery of the First Meteor from beyond the Solar System". Scientific American. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
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  64. ^ Loeb, Avi (14 June 2022). "Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery". Medium. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
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