The Breakthrough Listen Search for Intelligent Life: Technosignature Search of 97 Nearby Galaxies

Carmen Choza; Daniel Bautista; Steve Croft; Andrew P. V. Siemion; Bryan Brzycki; Krishnakumar Bhattaram; Daniel Czech; Imke de Pater; Vishal Gajjar; Howard Isaacson; Kevin Lacker; Brian Lacki; Matthew Lebofsky; David H. E. MacMahon; Danny Price; Sarah Schoultz; Sofia Sheikh; Savin Shynu Varghese; Lawrence Morgan; Jamie Drew; S. Pete Worden

doi:10.3847/1538-3881/acf576

The Astronomical Journal (Jan 2023)

The Breakthrough Listen Search for Intelligent Life: Technosignature Search of 97 Nearby Galaxies

Carmen Choza,
Daniel Bautista,
Steve Croft,
Andrew P. V. Siemion,
Bryan Brzycki,
Krishnakumar Bhattaram,
Daniel Czech,
Imke de Pater,
Vishal Gajjar,
Howard Isaacson,
Kevin Lacker,
Brian Lacki,
Matthew Lebofsky,
David H. E. MacMahon,
Danny Price,
Sarah Schoultz,
Sofia Sheikh,
Savin Shynu Varghese,
Lawrence Morgan,
Jamie Drew,
S. Pete Worden

Affiliations

Carmen Choza: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; SETI Institute , 339 Bernardo Avenue, Suite 200, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
Daniel Bautista: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Steve Croft: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; SETI Institute , 339 Bernardo Avenue, Suite 200, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
Andrew P. V. Siemion: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; SETI Institute , 339 Bernardo Avenue, Suite 200, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; University of Malta , Institute of Space Sciences and Astronomy, Malta
Bryan Brzycki: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Krishnakumar Bhattaram: Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Daniel Czech: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Imke de Pater: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Vishal Gajjar: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; SETI Institute , 339 Bernardo Avenue, Suite 200, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
Howard Isaacson: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Kevin Lacker: Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Brian Lacki: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Matthew Lebofsky: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
David H. E. MacMahon: Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Danny Price: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research, Curtin University , Bentley, WA 6102, Australia
Sarah Schoultz: Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Sofia Sheikh: ORCiD; Breakthrough Listen, University of California , Berkeley, 501 Campbell Hall 3411, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; SETI Institute , 339 Bernardo Avenue, Suite 200, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
Savin Shynu Varghese: SETI Institute , 339 Bernardo Avenue, Suite 200, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
Lawrence Morgan: Green Bank Observatory , 155 Observatory Road, Green Bank, WV 24944, USA
Jamie Drew: The Breakthrough Initiatives , NASA Research Park, Boulevard 18, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
S. Pete Worden: The Breakthrough Initiatives , NASA Research Park, Boulevard 18, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/acf576
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 167, no. 1
p. 10

Abstract

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The Breakthrough Listen search for intelligent life is, to date, the most extensive technosignature search of nearby celestial objects. We present a radio technosignature search of the centers of 97 nearby galaxies, observed by Breakthrough Listen at the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope. We performed a narrowband Doppler drift search using the turboSETI pipeline with a minimum signal-to-noise parameter threshold of 10, across a drift rate range of ±4 Hz s ^−1 , with a spectral resolution of 3 Hz and a time resolution of ∼18.25 s. We removed radio frequency interference (RFI) by using an on-source/off-source cadence pattern of six observations and discarding signals with Doppler drift rates of 0. We assess factors affecting the sensitivity of the Breakthrough Listen data reduction and search pipeline using signal injection and recovery techniques and apply new methods for the investigation of the RFI environment. We present results in four frequency bands covering 1–11 GHz, and place constraints on the presence of transmitters with equivalent isotropic radiated power on the order of 10 ^26 W, corresponding to the theoretical power consumption of Kardashev Type II civilizations.

Published in The Astronomical Journal

ISSN: 0004-6256 (Print); 1538-3881 (Online)
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Science: Astronomy
Website: https://iopscience.iop.org/journal/1538-3881

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