Australia’s role in the biggest ever search for alien life has officially begun, with the Parkes Telescope in central west NSW set to play a strategic part in the 10-year journey. From a report on ABC:The $100 million Breakthrough Listen initiative has been underway in the United States for about nine months. Overnight, the telescope — affectionately known as the Dish — achieved first light with an observation of an Earth-sized planet orbiting the nearest star to our Sun, Proxima Centauri. According to CSIRO program director John Reynolds, that so-called “exo-Earth” would be a good place to start looking for other life forms. “Alpha Centauri, or its little companion, Proxima Centauri, is actually the closest star to Earth — it’s only 4.3 light years away,” Dr Reynolds said. “Just this year a planet was discovered around Proxima Centauri — it’s called an exo-Earth because it has some of the properties of Earth.”

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Source: Slashdot – Australia To Play Strategic Role in Biggest Ever Search For Extra-Terrestrial Life