The questionnow known asFermis Paradoxhas engaged astronomers, philosophers, and everyone in between for the intervening decades.
The researchers explored whether a next-generation space telescope could spot solar panels on a nearby exoplanet.
In the paper, the researchers explore whether silicon-based solar panels could be detected on an Earth-like exoplanet.
An artist’s concept of an exoplanet (left) that collects power from solar cells in orbit (right).Illustration: NASA / Jay Friedlander
The first phase of development on the next-generation exoplanet-focused telescope is slated for 2029.
Our galaxy has been around for billions of years, and our universe for billions more.
News from the future, delivered to your present.
An artist’s concept of the Habitable Worlds Observatory Illustration: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab
