A University of Manchester astronomer has led a major international overhaul of the rules that would govern how scientists announce evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence to the world.
Professor Michael Garrett, the Sir Bernard Lovell Chair of Astrophysics, chaired a global effort to update the long-standing “post-detection protocols” used by researchers involved in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). The updated guidelines have now been formally ratified by the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA).