Xenoarchaeology

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Xenoarchaeology is a form of archaeology concerned with the physical remains of past (but not necessarily extinct) alien cultures. These may be found on planets or satellites, in space, the asteroid belt, planetary orbit or Lagrangian points.

Xenoarchaeology is a protoscience that exists thus far mainly in science fiction works, and is not actively practiced by many mainstream archaeologists. To date, no extraterrestrial remains have been proven to exist, and most serious archaeological work has been in refutation of fringe theories (see Fringe Theories below for examples of purported extraterrestrial artefacts from outside mainstream science).

The 1997 Theoretical Archaeology Group conference featured a session on "archaeology and science fiction".

The 2004 annual meeting of the American Anthropological Association featured a session Anthropology, Archaeology and Interstellar Communication[1].

Contents

[edit] Etymology

The name derives from Greek xenos (ξένος) which means 'stranger, alien', and archaeology 'study of ancients'.

Xenoarchaeology is sometimes called exoarchaeology, although some would argue that the prefix exo- would be more correctly applied to the study of human activities in a space environment.[2]

Other names for xenoarchaeology, or specialised fields of interest, include Probe SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence), extraterrestrial archaeology, space archaeology, SETA (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Artefacts), Dysonian SETI, Planetary SETI, SETT (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Technology), SETV (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Visitation),[3] extraterrestrial anthropology, areoarchaeology and selenoarchaeology.[4]

[edit] Justification

It is arguably the case that any evidence we discover of extraterrestrial intelligence, whether it be an artefact or an electromagnetic signal, would come from a long-vanished civilization. Thus the entire SETI project can be seen as a form of archaeology.[5][6][7]

The study of alien cultures might offer us glimpses into our own species' past or future development.[8][9]

Vicky Walsh argued for the existence of "exo-artefacts" using the principle of mediocrity and the Drake equation. She proposed that a theoretical and speculative field of archaeology be established in order to test outlandish claims, and to prepare for a time when undeniably extraterrestrial artefacts needed to be analysed.

"If it is possible to construct an abstract archaeology that can be tested and refined on earth and then applied to areas beyond our planet, then the claims for ETI remains on the moon and Mars may really be evaluated in light of established archaeological theory and analysis"[10].

Greg Fewer has argued that archaeological techniques should be used to evaluate alleged UFO landing or crash sites, such as Roswell [11]

[edit] History

The origins of the field have been traced[12] to theories about a hypothetical Martian civilization based on observations of what were perceived as canals on Mars. These theories, of which Percival Lowell was the most famous exponent, were apparently inspired by a mistranslation of a quote by Giovanni Schiaparelli.

[edit] Planetary SETI

Planetary SETI is concerned with the search for extraterrestrial structures on the surface of bodies in the Solar system. Claims for evidence of extraterrestrial artefacts can be divided into three groups - the Moon, Mars, and the other planets and their satellites.[4]

Examples of sites of interest include the "bridge" sighted in the Mare Crisium in 1953, and the "Blair Cuspids" sighted in 1966. In 2006, Ian Crawford proposed that a search for alien artefacts be conducted on the Moon.[13]

Percival Lowell's mistaken identification of Martian canals was an early attempts to detect and study an alien culture from its physical remains.

The Society for Planetary SETI Research is a loose organisation of researchers interested in this field. The organisation does not endorse any particular conclusions drawn by its members on particular sites.[14]

[edit] Probe SETI, or SETA

A great deal of research and writing has been done, and some searches conducted for extraterrestrial probes in the solar system.[15] This followed the work of Ronald N. Bracewell (see Bracewell probe).

Robert Freitas [16] [17] [18], Christopher Rose and Gregory Wright have argued that interstellar probes can be a more energy efficient means of communication than electromagnetic broadcasts [19].

Thus, a solarcentric Search for Extraterrestrial Artifacts (SETA) [20] would seem to be favored over the more traditional radio or optical searches.

On the basis that the Earth-Moon or Sun-Earth libration orbits might constitute convenient parking places for automated extraterrestrial probes, unsuccessful searches were conducted by Freitas and Valdes [21][22]

See also Sentinel hypothesis.

[edit] Dysonian SETI

In a 1960 paper, Freeman Dyson proposed the idea of a Dyson sphere, a type of extraterrestrial artefact able to be searched for and studied at interstellar distances. Following that paper, several searches have been conducted.[23]

In a 2005 paper, Luc Arnold proposed a means of detecting smaller, though still megascale, artefacts from their distinctive light curve signature.[24] (see Astroengineering).

[edit] Fringe Theories

At the fringes of scientific respectability, there is a lively subculture of enthusiasts who study purported structures on the Moon or Mars. The controversial "structures" (such as the Face on Mars) are not accepted as more than natural features by most scientists.

The palaeocontact or ancient astronaut theories, espoused by Erich von Daniken and others are further examples of fringe theories. These claims that the Earth was visited in prehistoric times by extraterrestrial visitors.

[edit] Science Fiction

Xenoarchaeological themes are common in science fiction. Works about the exploration of enigmatic extraterrestrial artefacts have been satirically categorized as Big Dumb Object stories.

Some of the more prominent examples of xenoarchaeological fiction include Arthur C. Clarke's novel Rendezvous With Rama, and H. Beam Piper's short story Omnilingual.

Jack McDevitt's science fiction novels often revolve around human or alien historical and archaeological mysteries.

[edit] Novels

[edit] Short stories

[edit] Computer games

[edit] Movies

[edit] Television

See also List of fictional xenoarchaeologists

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.seti.org/site/pp.asp?c=ktJ2J9MMIsE&b=617353, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  2. ^ Freitas, Robert. Naming Extraterrestrial Life., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  3. ^ Darling, David. SETA (Search for Extraterrestrial Artifacts)., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  4. ^ a b Matthews, Keith, 2002, Archaeology and the Extraterrestrial, in Miles Russell (ed), Digging Holes in Popular Culture, Bournemouth University School of Conservation Sciences Occasional Paper 7, Oxbow Books, Oxford, pp. 129-60
  5. ^ They're Dead, Jim!. SETI League., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  6. ^ Future Archaeology. Astrobiology Magazine (October 5, 2006).
  7. ^ Tarter, Jill (July 9th, 2004). Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence - A Necessarily Long-Term Strategy., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  8. ^ Kershaw, Carolyne (June 1996). "Letters - Star Trek digging". British Archaeology (15)., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  9. ^ Thomas, Charles (February 1996). "Diggers at the final frontier". British Archaeology (11)., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  10. ^ Walsh, Vicky, 2002, The case for exo-archaeology, in Miles Russell (ed), Digging Holes in Popular Culture, Bournemouth University School of Conservation Sciences Occasional Paper 7, Oxbow Books, Oxford, pp. 121-8.
  11. ^ Fewer, G. Searching for extraterrestrial intelligence: an archaeological approach to verifying evidence for extraterrestrial exploration on Earth, http://www.nidsci.org/pdf/fewer.pdf, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  12. ^ Sutton, Mark Q. & Yohe, Robert M., II 2003, Archaeology: The Science of the Human Past, Allyn & Bacon, Boston, p. 73
  13. ^ Groshong, Kimm. "Looking for aliens on the Moon", New Scientist, 16 May 2006., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  14. ^ Society for Planetary SETI Research., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  15. ^ Stride, S.. Probing for ETI's Probes in the Solar System., retrieved October 7, 2006.
  16. ^ Freitas, R., Interstellar Probes: a New Approach to SETI, http://www.rfreitas.com/Astro/InterstellarProbesJBIS1980.htm, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  17. ^ Freitas, R., Debunking the Myths of Interstellar Probes, http://www.rfreitas.com/Astro/ProbeMyths1983.htm, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  18. ^ Freitas, R., The Case for Interstellar Probes, http://www.rfreitas.com/Astro/TheCaseForInterstellarProbes1983.htm, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  19. ^ Rose, C. & Wright, G., Inscribed Matter as an Energy-Efficient Means of Communication with an Extraterrestrial Civilization, http://www.winlab.rutgers.edu/~crose/papers/nature.pdf, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  20. ^ Freitas, R., The Search for Extraterrestrial Artifacts (SETA), http://www.rfreitas.com/Astro/SETAJBISNov1983.htm, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  21. ^ Freitas, R. & Valdes, F., A Search for Natural or Artificial Objects Located at the Earth-Moon Libration Points, http://www.rfreitas.com/Astro/SearchIcarus1980.htm, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  22. ^ Valdes, F. & Freitas, R., A Search for Objects near the Earth-Moon Lagrangian Points, http://www.rfreitas.com/Astro/SearchIcarus1983.htm, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  23. ^ Carrigan, D., Other Dyson Sphere searches, http://home.fnal.gov/~carrigan/Infrared_Astronomy/Other_searches.htm, retrieved October 7, 2006.
  24. ^ Arnold, L., Transit Lightcurve Signatures of Artificial Objects, http://arxiv.org/astro-ph/0503580, retrieved October 7, 2006.

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