A VLA Search for Radio Signals from M31 and M33

TL;DR

This study used the upgraded VLA to conduct a high-resolution search for artificial radio signals from the nearby galaxies M31 and M33, aiming to detect extraterrestrial intelligence signals across billions of stars.

Contribution

It is the first high spectral resolution SETI search targeting entire nearby galaxies with the VLA, sampling more stars than previous efforts.

Findings

No narrowband signals detected above SNR of 7

Set upper flux limits of 0.24 Jy and 1.33 Jy in the observed spectral windows

First use of upgraded VLA for SETI observations

Abstract

Observing nearby galaxies would facilitate the search for artificial radio signals by sampling many billions of stars simultaneously, but few efforts have been made to exploit this opportunity. An added attraction is that the Milky Way is the second-largest member of the Local Group, so our galaxy might be a probable target for hypothetical broadcasters in nearby galaxies. We present the first relatively high spectral resolution (<1 kHz) 21 cm band search for intelligent radio signals of complete galaxies in the Local Group with the Jansky VLA, observing the galaxies M31 (Andromeda) and M33 (Triangulum) - the first and third largest members of the group respectively - sampling more stars than any prior search of this kind. We used 122 Hz channels over a 1 MHz spectral window in the target galaxy velocity frame of reference, and 15 Hz channels over a 125 kHz window in our local standard of rest. No narrowband signals were detected above a signal-to-noise ratio of 7, suggesting the absence of continuous narrowband flux greater than approximately 0.24 Jy and 1.33 Jy in the respective spectral windows illuminating our part of the Milky Way during our observations in December 2014 and January 2015. This is also the first study in which the upgraded VLA has been used for SETI.