The Gˆ Mid-Infrared Search for Extraterrestrial Civilizations with Large Power Supplies: First Results

We present initial results from the Glimpsing Heat from Alien Technologies ("G-HAT" or Gˆ), in which we use the WISE all-sky mid-infrared (MIR) Source Catalog to search for and place constraints on the abundance of extraterrestrial civilizations with large power supplies. A civilization consuming a significant fraction of the luminous power of their host star (Kardashev type II civilization or K2; Kardashev 1964) or galaxy (K3) and operating at a temperature similar to the equilibrium temperatures in or near stellar habitable zones will produce MIR excess emission in the form of waste heat. Searches for such MIR excesses from K2s have been performed in the past, notably by Carrigan (2009) using the IRAS source catalog. Taking advantage of the 103 improvement in sensitivity over IRAS provided by WISE, Gˆ has enabled the first systematic search for waste heat from galaxy-spanning K3 civilizations and will search for K2s throughout a significant fraction of the Milky Way's volume.

We find that a galaxy-spanning (K III) civilization with an power supply of more than about one percent of its stellar luminosity will have detectable mid-infrared excess. We have produced a catalog of 32,000 WISE extended sources and visually reviewed the data and literature on the reddest 4000 of them, identifying several hundred candidates worthy of detailed observational follow-up. Mid-infrared spectra, far-infrared photometry, and radio emission from CO could be used to distinguish extraterrestrial mid-infrared radiation from dust. We will extend this analysis to WISE point sources to search for K2s.