Xenoarchaeology, a branch of

xenology Astrobiology, and the related field of exobiology, is an interdisciplinary scientific field that studies the origins, early evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe. Astrobiology is the multidisciplinary field that investig ...

dealing with extraterrestrial cultures, is a

hypothetical A hypothesis (plural hypotheses) is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. For a hypothesis to be a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it. Scientists generally base scientific hypotheses on previous obser ...

form of

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

that exists mainly in works of science fiction. The field is concerned with the study of the material remains to reconstruct and interpret past life-ways of alien civilizations. Xenoarchaeology is not currently practiced by mainstream archaeologists due to the current lack of any material for the discipline to study.

Etymology

The name derives from

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

''xenos'' (ξένος) which means 'stranger, alien', and

'study of ancients'. Xenoarchaeology is sometimes called ''astroarchaeology'' or ''exoarchaeology'', although some would argue that the prefix exo- would be more correctly applied to the study of human activities in a space environment. Other names for xenoarchaeology, or specialised fields of interest, include Probe

SETI The search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) is a collective term for scientific searches for intelligent extraterrestrial life, for example, monitoring electromagnetic radiation for signs of transmissions from civilizations on other pl ...

(Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence), extraterrestrial archaeology,

space archaeology In archaeology, space archaeology is the research-based study of various human-made items found in space, their interpretation as clues to the adventures humanity has experienced in space, and their preservation as cultural heritage. It includes ...

, SETA (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Artifacts), Dysonian SETI, Planetary SETI, SETT (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Technology), SETV (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Visitation), extraterrestrial anthropology, areoarchaeology and selenoarchaeology.Matthews, Keith, 2002, Archaeology and the Extraterrestrial, in Miles Russell (ed), Digging Holes in Popular Culture, Bournemouth University School of Conservation Sciences Occasional Paper 7, Oxbow Books, Oxford, pp. 129–60

Justification

It is arguably the case that, due to the immense distances between stars, any evidence we discover of extraterrestrial intelligence, whether it be an artifact or an electromagnetic signal, may come from a long-vanished civilization. Thus the entire SETI project can be seen as a form of archaeology. Additionally, due to the extreme

age of the universe In physical cosmology, the age of the universe is the time elapsed since the Big Bang. Astronomers have derived two different measurements of the age of the universe: a measurement based on direct observations of an early state of the universe, ...

, there may be a reasonable expectation for astrobiology research to produce evidence of extinct alien life prior to the discovery of alien life itself., retrieved 8 January 2011. The study of alien cultures might offer us glimpses into our own species' past or future development. Vicky Walsh argued for the existence of "exo-artifacts" using the principle of mediocrity and the

Drake equation The Drake equation is a probabilistic argument used to estimate the number of active, communicative extraterrestrial civilizations in the Milky Way Galaxy. The equation was formulated in 1961 by Frank Drake, not for purposes of quantifying ...

. She proposed that a theoretical and speculative field of archaeology be established in order to test outlandish claims and to prepare for a time when undeniably extraterrestrial artifacts needed to be analysed. "If it is possible to construct an abstract archaeology that can be tested and refined on earth and then applied to areas beyond our planet, then the claims for ETI remains on the moon and Mars may really be evaluated in light of established archaeological theory and analysis". Ben McGee similarly proposed the creation of a set of interdisciplinary, proactive xenoarchaeological guidelines, arguing that identifying suspected artifacts of astrobiology is all that is required to justify establishing a methodology for xenoarchaeology. He emphasized the necessity of proactive xenoarchaeological work in order to avoid future bias, mischaracterization, and information mismanagement, and he cites three scenarios under which such a methodology or set of guidelines would be useful, those being "

remote sensing Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about an object or phenomenon without making physical contact with the object, in contrast to in situ or on-site observation. The term is applied especially to acquiring information about Eart ...

" of a potential xenoarchaeological artifact, encountering an artifact during "human exploration," and "terrestrial interception" of an artifact. Greg Fewer has argued that archaeological techniques should be used to evaluate alleged UFO landing or crash sites, such as Roswell.

History

The origins of the field have been traced to theories about a hypothetical Martian civilization based on observations of what were perceived as

canals on Mars During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it was erroneously believed that there were "canals" on the planet Mars. These were a network of long straight lines in the equatorial regions from 60° north to 60° south latitude on Mars, observed ...

. These theories, of which Percival Lowell was the most famous exponent, were apparently inspired by a mistranslation of a quote by

Giovanni Schiaparelli Giovanni Virginio Schiaparelli ( , also , ; 14 March 1835 – 4 July 1910) was an Italian astronomer and science historian. Biography He studied at the University of Turin, graduating in 1854, and later did research at Berlin Observatory, ...

. The 1997 Theoretical Archaeology Group conference featured a session on "archaeology and science fiction". The 2004 annual meeting of the American Anthropological Association featured a session ''Anthropology, Archaeology and Interstellar Communication''.

Planetary SETI

Planetary SETI is concerned with the search for extraterrestrial structures on the surface of bodies in the

Solar System The Solar System Capitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar ...

. Claims for evidence of extraterrestrial artifacts can be divided into three groups, the Moon, Mars, and the other planets and their satellites. Examples of sites of interest include the "bridge" sighted in the

Mare Crisium Mare Crisium (Latin ''crisium'', the "Sea of Crises") is a lunar mare located in the Moon's Crisium basin, just northeast of Mare Tranquillitatis. The basin is of the Pre-Imbrian period, 4.55 to 3.85 billion years ago. Characteristics Mare Cri ...

in 1953, and the "Blair Cuspids", "an unusual arrangement of seven spirelike objects of varying heights" at the western edge of the ''

Mare Tranquillitatis Mare Tranquillitatis (Latin ''tranquillitātis'', the Sea of Tranquillity or Sea of Tranquility; see spelling differences) is a lunar mare that sits within the Tranquillitatis basin on the Moon. It is the first location on another world to be ...

'', photographed by the

Lunar Orbiter 2 The 1966 Lunar Orbiter 2 robotic spacecraft mission, part of the Lunar Orbiter Program, was designed primarily to photograph smooth areas of the lunar surface for selection and verification of safe landing sites for the Surveyor and Apollo mis ...

on 20 November 1966. In 2006, Ian Crawford proposed that a search for alien artifacts be conducted on the Moon.

Percival Lowell Percival Lowell (; March 13, 1855 – November 12, 1916) was an American businessman, author, mathematician, and astronomer who fueled speculation that there were canals on Mars, and furthered theories of a ninth planet within the Solar System. ...

's mistaken identification of

Martian canals During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it was erroneously believed that there were "canals" on the planet Mars. These were a network of long straight lines in the equatorial regions from 60° north to 60° south latitude on Mars, observed ...

was an early attempt to detect and study an alien culture from its supposed physical remains. More recently, there was interest in the supposed

Face on Mars Cydonia (, ) is a region on the planet Mars that has attracted both scientific and popular interest. The name originally referred to the albedo feature (distinctively coloured area) that was visible from earthbound telescopes. The area borders ...

, an example of the psychological phenomenon of

pareidolia Pareidolia (; ) is the tendency for perception to impose a meaningful interpretation on a nebulous stimulus, usually visual, so that one sees an object, pattern, or meaning where there is none. Common examples are perceived images of animals, ...

. The Society for Planetary SETI Research is a loose organization of researchers interested in this field. The organization does not endorse any particular conclusions drawn by its members on particular sites.

Probe SETI, or SETA

A great deal of research and writing has been done, and some searches conducted for extraterrestrial probes in the Solar System. This followed the work of Ronald N. Bracewell.

Robert Freitas Robert A. Freitas Jr. (born 1952) is an American nanotechnologist. Career In 1974, Freitas earned a bachelor's degree in both physics and psychology from Harvey Mudd College, and in 1978, he received a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Santa Clara ...

, Christopher Rose and Gregory Wright have argued that interstellar probes can be a more energy-efficient means of communication than electromagnetic broadcasts. If so, a solar centric Search for Extraterrestrial Artifacts (SETA) would seem to be favored over the more traditional radio or optical searches. Robert A. Freitas coined the Term seta in the 1980s. On the basis that the Earth-Moon or Sun-Earth

libration orbit In lunar astronomy, libration is the wagging or wavering of the Moon perceived by Earth-bound observers and caused by changes in their perspective. It permits an observer to see slightly different hemispheres of the surface at different tim ...

s might constitute convenient parking places for automated extraterrestrial probes, unsuccessful searches were conducted by Freitas and Valdes.

Dysonian SETI

In a 1960 paper,

Freeman Dyson Freeman John Dyson (15 December 1923 – 28 February 2020) was an English-American theoretical physicist and mathematician known for his works in quantum field theory, astrophysics, random matrices, mathematical formulation of quantum m ...

proposed the idea of a

Dyson sphere A Dyson sphere is a hypothetical megastructure that completely encompasses a star and captures a large percentage of its solar power output. The concept is a thought experiment that attempts to explain how a spacefaring civilization would meet ...

, a type of extraterrestrial artifact able to be searched for and studied at interstellar distances. Following that paper, several searches have been conducted. In a 2005 paper, Luc Arnold proposed a means of detecting smaller, though still mega-scale, artifacts from their distinctive transit

light curve In astronomy, a light curve is a graph of light intensity of a celestial object or region as a function of time, typically with the magnitude of light received on the y axis and with time on the x axis. The light is usually in a particular frequ ...

signature.Arnold, L.
Transit Lightcurve Signatures of Artificial Objects
retrieved 29 October 2010. ''(see

Astroengineering Engineering on an astronomical scale, or astronomical engineering, ''i.e.'', engineering involving operations with whole astronomical objects (planets, stars, etc.), is a known theme in science fiction, as well as a matter of recent scientific ...

)''.

Criticism

Xenoarchaeology is referred to as 'pseudoarcheology' by some circles of archaeologists and critics of the concept of 'ancient aliens'. The idea of xenoarchaeology has been popularized in non-academic television programs such as the History Channel series ''Ancient Aliens,'' which uses a strategy known as 'fire-hosing' to co-mingle fact with fiction in order to spread theories of an alternate past that normalizes white supremacist, nativist, imperialist, settler-colonial, and Christian perspectives. Researchers and scholars featured as guests on the show often profess to be a part of an oppressed minority of academics that 'big archaeology' refuses to acknowledge or attempts to disenfranchise. This claim of being a maverick or a rogue absolves these individuals of their frequent lack of credentials to legitimately comment on the field of archaeology. Xenoarchaeology prioritizes well-known, monumental archaeological structures, a criticism of early archaeology the field of xenoarchaeology perpetuates. In claiming these monuments could have only been constructed with extraterrestrial intervention, xenoarchaeologists or alien astronaut theorists are also claiming that the often non-white Indigenous people in the regions in which these monuments appear could not have built them on their own. Additionally, these alien saviors are often portrayed as light-skinned or Aryan in complexion, as prominent alien astronaut theorist Erich von Däniken claims in his work ''Chariots of the Gods,'' which has been considered a cornerstone in the field of xenoarchaeology for the last five decades. This re-structuring of the past undercuts the achievements and contributions of Indigenous people to human history that they have had and continue to have. Xenoarchaeology has been used in the United States to justify the genocide of Indigenous peoples on this continent. "The notion that the ancestors of Native Americans were not the first or only people on the continent has great popularity among white nationalists, who see it as a means of denying Native Americans an ancestral claim on their land".

Fringe theories

A subculture of enthusiasts studies purported structures on the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

. These controversial "structures" (such as the

) are not accepted as more than natural features by most scientists, examples of the

phenomenon. Palaeocontact or

ancient astronaut Ancient astronauts (or ancient aliens) refers to a pseudoscientific hypothesis which holds that intelligent extraterrestrial beings visited Earth and made contact with humans in antiquity and prehistoric times. Proponents suggest that this ...

theories, espoused by

Erich von Däniken Erich Anton Paul von Däniken (; ; born 14 April 1935) is a Swiss author of several books which make claims about extraterrestrial influences on early human culture, including the best-selling ''Chariots of the Gods?'', published in 1968. Von D ...

and others, are further examples of fringe theories. These claim that the Earth was visited in prehistoric times by extraterrestrial beings.

Science fiction

Xenoarchaeological themes are common in science fiction. Works about the exploration of enigmatic extraterrestrial artifacts have been satirically categorized as

Big Dumb Object In discussion of science fiction, a Big Dumb Object (BDO) is any mysterious object, usually of extraterrestrial or unknown origin and immense power, in a story which generates an intense sense of wonder by its mere existence. To a certain extent, ...

stories. Some of the more prominent examples of xenoarchaeological fiction include Arthur C. Clarke's novel ''

Rendezvous with Rama ''Rendezvous with Rama'' is a science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke first published in 1973. Set in the 2130s, the story involves a cylindrical alien starship that enters the Solar System. The story is told from the po ...

'', H. Beam Piper's short story '' Omnilingual'', and Charles Sheffield's

Heritage Universe Heritage may refer to: History and society * A heritage asset is a preexisting thing of value today ** Cultural heritage is created by humans ** Natural heritage is not * Heritage language Biology * Heredity, biological inheritance of physica ...

series.

Novels

* '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'' by Arthur C. Clarke * '' Broken Angels'' by Richard Morgan * '' Gateway'' by Fred Pohl * ''Grass'' by Sheri S. Tepper * '' Heritage Trilogy'' by Ian Douglas * '' Noon Universe'' by Strugatsky brothers. * ''

Rendezvous With Rama ''Rendezvous with Rama'' is a science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke first published in 1973. Set in the 2130s, the story involves a cylindrical alien starship that enters the Solar System. The story is told from the po ...

'' by Arthur C. Clarke * ''

Revelation Space ''Revelation Space'' is a 2000 science fiction novel by Welsh author Alastair Reynolds. It was the first novel (but not first published work of fiction) set in Reynolds's eponymous universe. The novel reflects Reynolds's professional background ...

'' by

Alastair Reynolds Alastair Preston Reynolds (born 13 March 1966) is a Welsh science fiction author. He specialises in hard science fiction and space opera. He spent his early years in Cornwall, moved back to Wales before going to Newcastle University, where he s ...

* ''

Ringworld ''Ringworld'' is a 1970 science fiction novel by Larry Niven, set in his Known Space universe and considered a classic of science fiction literature. ''Ringworld'' tells the story of Louis Wu and his companions on a mission to the Ringworld, a ...

'' (and its sequels) by

Larry Niven Laurence van Cott Niven (; born April 30, 1938) is an American science fiction writer. His best-known works are '' Ringworld'' (1970), which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards, and, with Jerry Pournelle, '' The Mote in God's E ...

* '' Saga of Seven Suns'' (Most notably Book 1: Hidden Empire) by Kevin J. Anderson * '' Strata'' by

Terry Pratchett Sir Terence David John Pratchett (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English humourist, satirist, and author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for his '' Discworld'' series of 41 novels. Pratchett's first no ...

* ''

The Engines of God ''The Engines of God'' is a science fiction novel by American author Jack McDevitt. Plot overview A group of xeno-archaeologists, together with interstellar pilot Priscilla Hutchins, attempt to unravel the mysteries surrounding tremendous mo ...

'' by

Jack McDevitt Jack McDevitt (born April 14, 1935) is an American science fiction author whose novels frequently deal with attempts to make contact with alien races, and with archaeology or xenoarchaeology. Most of his books follow either superluminal pilo ...

* ''The

Gaea Trilogy The ''Gaea Trilogy'' consists of three science fiction novels by John Varley. The stories tell of humanity's encounter with a living being in the shape of a 1,300 km diameter Stanford torus, inhabited by many different species, most notably the ...

'' by John Varley * The Giants series by James P. Hogan * ''

The Hercules Text ''The Hercules Text'' is a 1986 science fiction novel by American writer Jack McDevitt. It tells the story of a message of intelligent extraterrestrial origin received by SETI scientists. ''The Hercules Text'' was nominated for the Philip K. Di ...

'' by

* The novels in the

Charles Sheffield Charles Sheffield (25 June 1935 – 2 November 2002), an English-born mathematician, physicist and science-fiction writer, served as a President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America and of the American Astronautical Society. ...

* ''The Past of Forever'' (Children of the Stars, Book 4) by

Juanita Coulson Juanita Ruth Coulson (née Wellons) (born February 12, 1933) is an American science fiction and fantasy writer most well known for her ''Children of the Stars'' books, published from 1981 to 1989. She was a longtime editor of the science fiction ...

* ''The Season of Passage'' by Christopher Pike * '' The Voyage of the Space Beagle'' by

A. E. van Vogt Alfred Elton van Vogt ( ; April 26, 1912 – January 26, 2000) was a Canadian-born American science fiction author. His fragmented, bizarre narrative style influenced later science fiction writers, notably Philip K. Dick. He was one of the ...

Short stories

* "

At the Mountains of Madness ''At the Mountains of Madness'' is a science fiction-horror novella by American author H. P. Lovecraft, written in February/March 1931 and rejected that year by ''Weird Tales'' editor Farnsworth Wright on the grounds of its length. It was or ...

" by H. P. Lovecraft * "Old Testament" by

Jerome Bixby Drexel Jerome Lewis Bixby (January 11, 1923 – April 28, 1998) was an American short-story writer and scriptwriter. He wrote the 1953 story " It's a Good Life", which was the basis of a 1961 episode of ''The Twilight Zone'' and was included ...

* " Omnilingual" by

H. Beam Piper Henry Beam Piper (March 23, 1904 – ) was an American science fiction writer. He wrote many short stories and several novels. He is best known for his extensive Terro-Human Future History series of stories and a shorter series of "Paratime" alt ...

* " The Sentinel" by Arthur C. Clarke * "The Vaults of Yoh-Vombis" by Clark Ashton Smith *"The Adventure of Tintin:

Flight 714 to Sydney ''Flight 714 to Sydney'' (french: link=no, Vol 714 pour Sydney; originally published in English as ''Flight 714'') is the twenty-second volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. It was serialised ...

" by Herge

Video games

* ''

Alien Legacy ''Alien Legacy'' is a sci-fi strategy game developed by Joe Ybarra, Ybarra Productions and published by Sierra Entertainment, Sierra On-Line in 1994 for MS-DOS. Gameplay The game includes elements of city construction, research, resource manage ...

'' * '' Aliens versus Predator'' * '' Aliens vs. Predator'' * ''

Borderlands A borderland or borderlands are the geographical space or zone around a territorial border. Borderland or borderlands may refer to: Places * Borderland, West Virginia, an unincorporated community in Mingo County, West Virginia * Borderland (ele ...

'' * '' Civilization: Call to Power'' * ''

Dead Space ''Dead Space'' is a science fiction/ horror media franchise created by Glen Schofield and Michael Condrey, developed by Visceral Games, and published and owned by Electronic Arts. The franchise's chronology is not presented in a linear format; ...

'' * ''

Doom 3 ''Doom 3'' is a 2004 survival horror first-person shooter video game developed by id Software and published by Activision. ''Doom 3'' was originally released for Microsoft Windows on August 3, 2004, adapted for Linux later that year, and ported ...

'' * '' Freelancer'' * '' FreeSpace'' *'' Gateway'' * ''

Halo Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to: * Halo (optical phenomenon) * Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Video games * ''Halo'' (franch ...

'' series * '' Marathon 2: Durandal'' * ''

Mass Effect ''Mass Effect'' is a military science fiction media franchise created by Casey Hudson, Drew Karpyshyn and Preston Watamaniuk. The franchise depicts a distant future where humanity and several alien civilizations have colonized the known unive ...

'' *''

Master of Orion ''Master of Orion'' (abbreviated as MoO) is a turn-based, 4X science fiction strategy game in which the player leads one of ten races to dominate the galaxy through a combination of diplomacy and conquest while developing technology, exploring ...

'' * ''

Metal Fatigue In materials science, fatigue is the initiation and propagation of cracks in a material due to cyclic loading. Once a fatigue crack has initiated, it grows a small amount with each loading cycle, typically producing striations on some parts o ...

'' * ''

Outer Wilds ''Outer Wilds'' is a 2019 action-adventure game developed by Mobius Digital and published by Annapurna Interactive. It first released for Windows, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 before releasing for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S in 2022. A Nin ...

'' * ''

RAMA Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...

'' (based on Clarke's novel) * '' Resistance'' *''

Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri ''Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri'' is a 4X video game, considered a spiritual sequel to the ''Civilization'' series. Set in a science fiction depiction of the 22nd century, the game begins as seven competing ideological factions land on the planet ...

'' *'' Star Trek: A Final Unity'' * '' Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic'' * '' StarCraft'' series * '' Stellaris'' * '' The Dig'' * '' The Lacuna Expanse'' * '' Wing Commander: Privateer''

Movies

* '' A Genesis Found'' * '' Alien'' * ''

Alien vs. Predator ''Alien vs. Predator'' (also known as ''Aliens versus Predator'' and ''AVP'') is a science-fiction action horror media franchise created by comic book writers Randy Stradley and Chris Warner. The series is a crossover between, and part of, th ...

'' * '' Alien: Covenant'' * ''

Black Mountain Side "Black Mountain Side" is an instrumental by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was recorded in October 1968 at Olympic Studios in London, and is included on the group's 1969 debut album ''Led Zeppelin''. Composition and recording "Black Mo ...

'' * '' Chariots of the Gods'' * ''

Contact Contact may refer to: Interaction Physical interaction * Contact (geology), a common geological feature * Contact lens or contact, a lens placed on the eye * Contact sport, a sport in which players make contact with other players or objects * ...

'' * ''

DC Extended Universe The DC Extended Universe (DCEU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films and television series produced by DC Studios and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is based on characters that ...

'' * ''

Doom Doom is another name for damnation. Doom may also refer to: People * Doom (professional wrestling), the tag team of Ron Simmons and Butch Reed * Daniel Doom (born 1934), Belgian cyclist * Debbie Doom (born 1963), American softball pitcher * ...

'' * ''

Forbidden Planet ''Forbidden Planet'' is a 1956 American science fiction film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, produced by Nicholas Nayfack, and directed by Fred M. Wilcox from a script by Cyril Hume that was based on an original film story by Allen Adler and Irvi ...

'' * ''

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull ''Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull'' is a 2008 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and the fourth installment in the ''Indiana Jones'' series. Released and taking place 19 years after the previous ...

'' * '' Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'' * ''

Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Lawrence Kasdan, based on a story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. It stars Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ron ...

'' * '' Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom'' * '' Outlander'' * ''

Prometheus In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning " forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, kn ...

'' * ''

Sphere A sphere () is a geometrical object that is a three-dimensional analogue to a two-dimensional circle. A sphere is the set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three-dimensional space.. That given point is th ...

'' * '' Star Wars'' * '' Stargate'' * '' The Box'' * ''

The Fifth Element ''The Fifth Element'' is a 1997 English-language French science fiction action film conceived and directed by Luc Besson, as well as co-written by Besson and Robert Mark Kamen. It stars Bruce Willis, Gary Oldman, Chris Tucker, and Milla ...

'' * '' The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu'' * '' Total Recall'' * ''

Uncharted ''Uncharted'' is an action-adventure video game franchise published by Sony Interactive Entertainment and developed by Naughty Dog. Created by Amy Hennig, the ''Uncharted'' franchise follows a group of treasure hunters who travel across th ...

Television

* ''

Ancient Aliens ''Ancient Aliens'' is an American television series that explores the pseudohistorical and pseudoarchaeological ancient astronauts hypothesis, past human- extraterrestrial contact, UFOs, government conspiracies and related pseudoscientific topi ...

'' * ''

Babylon 5 ''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Tele ...

'' * '' Doctor Who'' * ''

Martian Chronicles ''The Martian Chronicles'' is a science fiction fix-up novel, published in 1950, by American writer Ray Bradbury that chronicles the exploration and settlement of Mars, the home of indigenous Martians, by Americans leaving a troubled Earth that ...

'' * '' Star Trek'' * '' Stargate'' * ''

Stargate SG-1 ''Stargate SG-1'' (often stylized in all caps, or abbreviated ''SG-1'') is a military science fiction adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's ''Stargate'' franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, ...

'' and its spinoff ''

Stargate Atlantis ''Stargate Atlantis'' (usually stylized in all caps and often abbreviated ''SGA'') is an adventure and military science fiction television series and part of MGM's ''Stargate'' franchise. The show was created by Brad Wright and Robert C. Coop ...

References

External links

Martian "artificial structures"

Space archaeology
{{Science fiction Extraterrestrial life Science fiction themes Ufology Pseudoarchaeology Hypothetical technology Astrobiology

Etymology

Justification

History

Planetary SETI

Probe SETI, or SETA

Dysonian SETI

Criticism

Fringe theories

Science fiction

Novels

Short stories

Video games

Movies

Television

See also

References

External links