A Protocol for Messaging to Extraterrestrial Intelligence
Dimitra Atri (U Kansas), Julia DeMarines (International Space U) and, Jacob Haqq-Misra (Penn State U)

TL;DR
This paper proposes a standardized protocol for messaging to extraterrestrial intelligence (METI) to improve message clarity, facilitate international collaboration, and enhance the likelihood of successful communication with extraterrestrial civilizations.
Contribution
It introduces a comprehensive, self-consistent METI protocol considering encoding, content, and transmission factors, and plans for public testing and iterative improvement.
Findings
Development of a METI protocol considering multiple communication factors
Creation of an interactive platform for public message testing
Potential to improve message clarity and cross-cultural understanding
Abstract
Messaging to extraterrestrial intelligence (METI) is a branch of study concerned with constructing and broadcasting a message toward habitable planets. Since the Arecibo message of 1974, the handful of METI broadcasts have increased in content and complexity, but the lack of an established protocol has produced unorganized or cryptic messages that could be difficult to interpret. Here we outline the development of a self-consistent protocol for messaging to extraterrestrial intelligence that provides constraints and guidelines for the construction of a message in order to maximize the probability that the message effectively communicates. A METI protocol considers several factors including signal encoding, message length, information content, anthropocentrism, transmission method, and transmission periodicity. Once developed, the protocol will be released for testing on different human…
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Taxonomy
TopicsSpace Science and Extraterrestrial Life · Opportunistic and Delay-Tolerant Networks
