In 1967, astronomers thought they had finally heard from the neighbors. They intercepted a signal so regular and precise it seemed impossible for it to be natural. But the excitement didn’t last.

In 2023, a coded message was beamed at Earth from Mars. After over a year, this simulated extraterrestrial signal was finally decoded. After over a year, a father-daughter team has decoded that signal ...

The first unmistakable signal from another intelligence may not be a cheerful greeting. A growing group of researchers is arguing that our inaugural contact is more likely to be a distress call, the ...