Can Kepler Discover Alien Civilisations?

Following on from Experimentor_4u’s recent post about Kepler and the puzzling star KIC8462852, let's take a more in depth look at Kepler and its search for life. Scientists have always wondered whether there were other planets out there in the cosmos, beyond the boundaries of our solar system – the Kepler satellite has finally answered this question. Undoubtedly there are alien worlds in abundance throughout our galaxy and beyond, but what if those planets hold more than interesting chemistry and water, what if they contain life itself, could Kepler detect this? And what would it need to detect to prove the existence of an advanced civilisation similar to our own?

How Kepler Detects Exoplanets

The Kepler satellite was launched in 2009, and has since then identified over 1,000 potential exoplanets outside our own star system, circling other stars, some similar to our own. It does this by measuring any flickering coming from a star caused by planets, comets and other astronomical bodies passing between the star and our planet. For a more detailed explanation of why Kepler is important, check out the video below.



 
Tell Tale Signs of an Advanced Alien Civilisation

While the Kepler satellite can detect flickering, it is through complex calculations that scientists are able to assess whether this flickering is caused by planets in another solar system, or something else. One such calculation uses the 3^rd Law of Planetary Motion to ascertain a planet's size and orbit. By knowing a planet's size, we can predict the amount of gravity it will generate. By knowing the orbit, we can tell if it is just in the right sweet spot to allow water and other materials which are associated with life to form. This helps us predict the likelihood of life based on our understanding of how it evolved on earth. But can an advanced alien civilisation be detected? In theory, it is possible that Kepler could detect flickering caused by massive alien constructions orbiting a distant star. This is exactly what some believe the unusual flickering of a star called KIC8462852may be caused by, but others believe there is another explanation. What's certain is that Kepler is opening up our understanding of the universe and just how many life-sustaining planets may be out there, whether someone is staring back at us as we gaze to these strange new worlds, only time will tell.