RSCL Earth Lookback Simulator: A Real-Time Multi-Physics Framework for Relativistic Signal Propagation from Confirmed Milky Way Exoplanets

TL;DR

The RSCL Earth Lookback Simulator is an open-source, browser-based framework that models seven physical effects on interstellar electromagnetic signals from 62 confirmed exoplanets, aiding research in SETI and astrobiology.

Contribution

It uniquely applies all seven known physical effects simultaneously to real exoplanet data in a publicly accessible tool.

Findings

Successfully models seven physical effects on signal propagation.

Uses real measured parameters from NASA Exoplanet Archive.

Provides a consistent, reference-checked simulation framework.

Abstract

Electromagnetic signals propagating across interstellar distances are subject to simultaneous distortion by seven distinct physical mechanisms: relativistic Doppler shift, stellar aberration, interstellar medium dispersion, special relativistic time dilation, general relativistic gravitational time dilation, cosmological redshift, and atmospheric transmission losses. Each effect is individually well established, yet to our knowledge no existing public browser-based framework applies all seven effects simultaneously to a catalog of confirmed exoplanets using real measured stellar and planetary parameters. This paper presents the RSCL Earth Lookback Simulator, an open-source browser-based framework that addresses this gap. Seven physics engines operate in parallel on a curated catalog of 62 confirmed Milky Way exoplanets, drawing all physical parameters from the NASA Exoplanet Archive and the NE2001 galactic electron density model. Computed quantities are checked for consistency against published reference values. The framework is deployed as a public open-source application and is designed to serve researchers in SETI, exoplanet science, astrobiology, and space mission planning.