
This transit would tell an alien civilization that the Earth is in the habitable zone of the Sun and could be a good candidate for colonization – if that’s what advanced alien civilizations do. Last month we published the news article “ Where to look for signals from alien astronomers with a good view of Earth”, which points out that there are about 100,000 planetary systems out there that would see the Earth as it passes in front of the Sun. One such item is a proposal by David Kipping and Alex Teachy of Columbia University in the US, who have come up with a way of hiding the Earth from aggressive civilizations on distant planets (at least I think this is real, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it were an elaborate hoax!). Sometimes, the biggest laughs on April Fools’ Day come from the stories that read like hoaxes but are actually true. Not bright enough: this adaptive-optics laser would have to be a million times brighter to cloak the Earth. Webinars Tune into online presentations that allow expert speakers to explain novel tools and applications.Video Watch our specially filmed videos to get a different slant on the latest science.Podcasts Our regular conversations with inspiring figures from the scientific community.Audio and video Explore the sights and sounds of the scientific world.Women in physics Celebrating women in physics and their contributions to the field.Supercool physics Experiments that probe the exotic behaviour of matter at ultralow temperatures depend on the latest cryogenics technology.The science and business of space Explore the latest trends and opportunities associated with designing, building, launching and exploiting space-based technologies.


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