Extended SETI (E-SETI) creates a worldwide project for the construction of post-physical telescopes and post-physical observatories in several parts of the world, and enables the creation of a post-physical astronomy

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Extended SETI (E-SETI) creates a worldwide project for the construction of post-physical telescopes and post-physical observatories in several parts of the world, and enables the creation of a post-physical astronomy. It is also a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary research program involving numerous institutions and organizations from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Europe, India, Japan, and China, among others.

History

Background
E-SETI started after a period of reflection on the relationship between our physical senses and our sense of reality, and on the role of the imagination in the development of our understanding of the universe and the world. The exploration of such themes led to the discovery that:

the universe and the world are physical, mathematical, and spiritual;
that there are many other worlds, and that there are many other beings living and observing us;
that the real world consists of a much greater, richer, and deeper reality, which we can observe only with the help of our senses;
that there are multiple possible explanations, or "truths," as we choose to call them;
and that it is often the case that our senses, our experiences, and our "knowledge" of what is true of the world and the universe are limited and biased, and that we have to take a much more comprehensive and inclusive approach to what we believe to be true.

This led to the conclusion that if we want to look more deeply into the real world and the real universe, and if we want to find more knowledge about them, we have to construct our own physical observatories and our own physical telescopes in our own physical environment, or create a post-physical universe.

Conception
The idea of E-SETI started as a personal reflection, and it soon evolved into a vision that became an organization called Enfold, an association of scientists, scholars, and others that wanted to explore this vision. The formation of the association and the concept of E-SETI were supported by the United States National Science Foundation (NSF), the Office of Naval Research (ONR), the United States Air Force (USAF), and the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI). The main driving force for the founding of the organization is Professor William T. Granade, and the executive director of the organization is Kip Thorne.

The first official E-SETI conference was held in Pasadena, California on April 9, 2014, which was opened by William T. Granade, Dr. Kip S. Thorne, and Robert J. Gwynne. This conference was one of the first big steps in an attempt to popularize E-SETI, and the first time that major scientific players have joined the discussion and initiated research. An E-SETI website and a wiki were developed to share and discuss ideas and insights.

Current research
During the past years, several projects have been developed and explored, with the following general goals:
Explore the concepts behind E-SETI to create a vision for its research and future directions
Explore the feasibility of possible observing techniques, or search strategies
Investigate the limits of E-SETI technology and science
Develop new observing techniques to explore the SETI frontier
Develop techniques to address technical challenges (e.g. how to avoid the effects of interstellar obscuration)
Apply concepts to analyze the data collected and address specific research questions

Current research projects in E-SETI include:
Radio astronomy SETI – The first project to be created was RadioSETI, developed by Dr. Roger D. Blandford, during which radio waves are used to observe other parts of the galaxy to help gain insights into its structure. The project is still active and is run in collaboration with the SETI Institute and radio astronomers all over the world.
VLBI SETI – The first project created by the E-SETI association was a collaboration with the Very Large Telescope, located in ESO's Paranal Observatory, who performed SETI research using Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). The project aimed to detect radio and microwave radiation using the VLBI Interferometer to detect pulses in the signal emitted by distant pulsars and active galactic nuclei, or quasars. The project is still active and is run in collaboration with radio astronomers all over the world.

Notable astronomers
Notable astronomers, including Dr. Blandford, who are involved in E-SETI projects and are members of the E-SETI association include:
Joseph Taylor
Richard C. Roberts
John Ball
David Gurnett
Mark Phillips
Peter G. Ferris
Jerry R. Massey
Mark G. Allen
David M. Duncan
Eric Korpela
John B. Peterson
Richard A. Daly
John G. Mitchell
Carl Sagan
Frank Drake

Criticism

The Association for the Promotion of Interstellar Understanding and Communication has received a large amount of criticism and opposition from various parties. Critics of the field include scientists and the general public alike.

In a 2005 article entitled Why are the public afraid of E-SETI?, published in the British Psychological Society's British Journal of Psychology, Peter G. Wignall argued that the public should be more tolerant of attempts at communication with extraterrestrial life, and that the SETI community has an obligation to explain their intentions.

Robert Zubrin has also criticized SETI, and in his 1996 book The Case Against Asteroid Mining, he argues that the economic benefits of mining an asteroid to extract its valuable metals are not worth the risk of triggering a collision, while Robert Freitas, in his 1994 book The Case for SETI, argues that the SETI project has no economic justification and should instead focus on other methods, such as radio telescopes.

On October 3, 2012, a paper published by researchers in the SETI Institute, in the journal Astrobiology, concluded that the search for extraterrestrial life is not only scientifically possible, but probable. This paper was published without the knowledge or approval of the SETI Institute's director, Frank Drake.

In 2017, Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla Inc. joined the board of directors of the SETI Institute. He expressed concerns that SETI may inadvertently draw the attention of "bad actors" to potential hidden signals, potentially triggering hostile alien reaction. Musk's concerns stem from the possibility that his space vehicle SpaceX would communicate with another civilization using radio signals, which could draw the attention of the Chinese or the Russians.

See also

Breakthrough Initiatives
Communicating with Extraterrestrial Intelligence
Extraterrestrial biology
European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grant
List of extra-solar planets
List of proposed space probes
Message to Alpha Centauri
Message to ETI International (METI)
SETI@home
SETI Conferences
SETI Institute
SETI Star Code
UFO conspiracy theory
We Are Legion (War of the Worlds)

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