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PBS Space Time

We’ve Been Looking for Aliens for 70 Years. We've Been Doing It Wrong All Along

Season 11 Episode 29 | 20m 48s

We’ve been looking for messages from the stars ever since Frank Drake pointed the Green Bank radio telescope at Tau Ceti and Epsilon Eridany 65 years ago. He saw nothing that couldn’t be explained by natural causes. Nor have the much more extensive SETI surveys conducted since. So, maybe there are no alien signals to see. Or maybe we need to update how we search for them.

Aired: 06/03/26
Extras
Watch • 14:27
PBS Space Time
We Thought Black Holes Ended in Singularities. They Might End In a Frozen Big Bang
Physicists hope Planck stars can save us from black hole singularities and paradoxes.
Episode: S11 E28 | 14:27
Watch • 17:41
PBS Space Time
We Found Galaxies Too Old for the Universe
Galaxies older than the universe? Webb's findings keep defying our best explanations.
Episode: S11 E27 | 17:41
Watch • 16:16
PBS Space Time
Earth’s Core Should Be Impossible. A New State of Matter Explains It.
Earth's core: solid or liquid? Yes — we know more about distant galaxies than our own interior.
Episode: S11 E26 | 16:16
Watch • 14:42
PBS Space Time
Something Disturbing Happens When You Solve Einstein's Equations This Way
Gödel found a time-travel solution in General Relativity, revealing spacetime can loop on itself.
Episode: S11 E25 | 14:42
Watch • 18:46
PBS Space Time
Martian Soil Is Deadly. And That's Why It Might Support Life
Tardigrades can survive almost anything—even most of Mars. But one Martian chemical stops even them.
Episode: S11 E24 | 18:46
Watch • 18:18
PBS Space Time
Is the LHC Creating Dark Matter?
The Higgs boson may open a portal to hidden particles that could explain dark matter.
Episode: S11 E23 | 18:18
Watch • 19:02
PBS Space Time
Dark Energy Is Driving the Universe Apart. We May Finally Know Why.
The universe expands faster. “Dark energy” may not be constant after all.
Episode: S11 E22 | 19:02
Watch • 16:26
PBS Space Time
Our Only Chance To Finally Unlock The Gravity Particle
There’s a new generation of experiments that may unlock the gravity particle.
Episode: S11 E21 | 16:26
Watch • 18:33
PBS Space Time
The Particle We’ve Been Chasing for 30 Years Might Not Exist
The universe thrums with quantum fields, except something may be missing: the sterile neutrino.
Episode: S11 E20 | 18:33
Watch • 18:42
PBS Space Time
The Universe Itself Might Be Hiding the Gravity Particle From Us
Gravitons, the particle of quantum gravity, may be impossible to detect.
Episode: S11 E19 | 18:42
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Watch • 14:27
PBS Space Time
We Thought Black Holes Ended in Singularities. They Might End In a Frozen Big Bang
Physicists hope Planck stars can save us from black hole singularities and paradoxes.
Episode: S11 E28 | 14:27
Watch • 17:41
PBS Space Time
We Found Galaxies Too Old for the Universe
Galaxies older than the universe? Webb's findings keep defying our best explanations.
Episode: S11 E27 | 17:41
Watch • 16:16
PBS Space Time
Earth’s Core Should Be Impossible. A New State of Matter Explains It.
Earth's core: solid or liquid? Yes — we know more about distant galaxies than our own interior.
Episode: S11 E26 | 16:16
Watch • 14:42
PBS Space Time
Something Disturbing Happens When You Solve Einstein's Equations This Way
Gödel found a time-travel solution in General Relativity, revealing spacetime can loop on itself.
Episode: S11 E25 | 14:42
Watch • 18:46
PBS Space Time
Martian Soil Is Deadly. And That's Why It Might Support Life
Tardigrades can survive almost anything—even most of Mars. But one Martian chemical stops even them.
Episode: S11 E24 | 18:46
Watch • 18:18
PBS Space Time
Is the LHC Creating Dark Matter?
The Higgs boson may open a portal to hidden particles that could explain dark matter.
Episode: S11 E23 | 18:18
Watch • 19:02
PBS Space Time
Dark Energy Is Driving the Universe Apart. We May Finally Know Why.
The universe expands faster. “Dark energy” may not be constant after all.
Episode: S11 E22 | 19:02
Watch • 16:26
PBS Space Time
Our Only Chance To Finally Unlock The Gravity Particle
There’s a new generation of experiments that may unlock the gravity particle.
Episode: S11 E21 | 16:26
Watch • 18:33
PBS Space Time
The Particle We’ve Been Chasing for 30 Years Might Not Exist
The universe thrums with quantum fields, except something may be missing: the sterile neutrino.
Episode: S11 E20 | 18:33
Watch • 18:42
PBS Space Time
The Universe Itself Might Be Hiding the Gravity Particle From Us
Gravitons, the particle of quantum gravity, may be impossible to detect.
Episode: S11 E19 | 18:42