Signal Detection Log
News & Updates
The search for signals from space is not a historical curiosity. It is an active scientific programme — and it generates news.
This feed covers discoveries, anniversaries, new data releases, and developments in the science of detection. Every story is sourced to peer-reviewed publications or institutional press releases. Every discovery is contextualised against the broader work happening across the site.
2025 // 3 files
Webb Telescope Finds Potential Biosignature Candidate in K2-18b's Atmosphere — and the Caveats
JWST detects dimethyl sulfide in a distant exoplanet atmosphere, raising questions about what signals biological activity—and what doesn't.
The Fermi Paradox at 75: Why the Most Important Question in Science Has No Answer Yet
Three-quarters of a century after Enrico Fermi asked 'Where is everybody?', silence remains the cosmos' most profound answer.
SETI@home Returns? Berkeley Team Explores Reactivation with Modern GPU Processing
Researchers propose modernizing distributed SETI computing with smartphone GPU processing and machine learning.
2024 // 4 files
50 Years of the Arecibo Message: The Broadcast That Changed How We Think About Contact
A half-century after we spoke first, humanity's cosmic greeting card is 50 light-years from home—still traveling outward.
New SETI Protocol Published: How Humanity Would Respond to a Confirmed Signal
The IAA updates its post-detection protocol for the first time in decades, establishing procedures for first contact.
Three-Body Problem on Netflix Sparks Renewed Interest in Dark Forest Theory
Netflix's sci-fi adaptation brings the Fermi Paradox to mainstream audiences—and revives old SETI debates.
Astronomers Detect Radio Signal Lasting 54 Minutes from Unknown Source
A mysterious pulsing radio object challenges traditional models of stellar magnetism and opens new questions about magnetar behavior.
2023 // 4 files
The Arecibo Message at 49: What Would We Send Today?
On the anniversary of humanity's first deliberate interstellar broadcast, experts ask what a modern message would include.
China's FAST Telescope Detects Over 1,000 Fast Radio Bursts from Single Source
One month of observation yields 1,863 FRBs, providing unprecedented data on magnetar behavior and intergalactic plasma.
New Analysis of 'Oumuamua Rules Out Hydrogen Iceberg Hypothesis
A peer-reviewed study challenges the leading natural explanation for the interstellar visitor's strange acceleration.
Jocelyn Bell Burnell Wins Special Breakthrough Prize — 56 Years After Discovering Pulsars
The overlooked pioneer of pulsar discovery finally receives recognition, 56 years after her groundbreaking observations.
2022 // 4 files
James Webb Space Telescope Detects Carbon Dioxide in Exoplanet Atmosphere
JWST's first confirmed CO₂ detection in an alien world opens a new window on biosignature science.
45 Years Since the Wow! Signal: What We Know Now
On its 45th anniversary, the strongest single-event SETI candidate remains tantalizingly unresolved.
Breakthrough Listen Releases Largest-Ever Dataset of Radio Observations
Two petabytes of raw SETI data now available to researchers worldwide through open science portal.
CHIME Telescope Detects Repeating Fast Radio Burst with 16-Day Cycle
Canadian astronomers discover the first periodic repeating fast radio burst, challenging theories about magnetar origins.