The world’s largest telescope will be completed this week in China and it has scientists very, very excited. With a whopping 1,640 feet (500 meter) wide dish the size of 30 football fields, the telescope will able to detect radio signals — and potentially signs of life — from distant planets.
For many people, the most exciting goal is the search for extraterrestrial life. The recent discovery of three life-friendly planets outside our solar system has rekindled discussion of whether intelligent life is unique to Earth. FAST’s sensitivity will be capable of detecting exoplanets like these in ways that other telescopes cannot. “FAST’s potential to discover an alien civilization will be five to 10 (times) that of current equipment, as it can see farther and darker planets,” Peng Bo, director of the NAO Radio Astronomy Technology Laboratory, told Xinhua. Read more