How will humans communicate with aliens? Whales might help us practise

Does life exist on other planets? Do aliens exist? If yes, what do they look like, and how do they communicate? These are some of the questions that intrigue the scientists. They lookfor answers.

In the latest study, researchers at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute believe that they might be successful in establishing communication with extraterrestrials by practising it in advance.

A team of scientists from the SETI Institute, University of California Davis and the Alaska Whale Foundation, had a close encounter with a non-human (aquatic) intelligence - whales.

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The Whale-SETI team has been examining the communication networks of humpback whales in order to develop intelligence filters for the hunt for alien intelligence.

During the research, a humpback whale named Twain approached and circled the team's boat in response to a recorded humpback 'contact' call played into the sea via an underwater speaker.

The scientists said that the whale responded in a conversational style to the whale 'greeting signal' and the communication lasted for 20 minutes. Twain also responded to each playback call and matched the interval variations between each signal.

The peer-reviewed research has been published in a recent issue of the journal Peer J. entitled: "Interactive Bioacoustic Playback as a Tool for Detecting and Exploring Nonhuman Intelligence: 'Conversing' with an Alaskan Humpback Whale."

As quoted in reports, lead author Dr Brenda McCowan of UC Davis, said: "We believe this is the first such communicative exchange between humans and humpback whales in the humpback 'language'."

Co-author Dr Fred Sharpe of the Alaska Whale Foundation said, "Humpback whales are extremely intelligent, have complex social systems, make tools - nets out of bubbles to catch fish -and communicate extensively with both songs and social calls."

Dr Laurance Doyle of the SETI Institute, a co-author on the paper, said: "Because of current limitations on technology, an important assumption of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence is that extraterrestrials will be interested in making contact and so target human receivers. This important assumption is certainly supported by the behavior of humpback whales."

The Whale-SETI team is examining intelligent, terrestrial, non-human communication systems. They aim at developing filters to apply to any alien signals received, the same as how Antarctica is being studied as a proxy for Mars.