By Tim Binnall
An intriguing study from the SETI Institute saw scientists seemingly speak to a humpback whale in the hopes of better understanding how best to communicate with extraterrestrials should they reach out to our planet someday in the future. According to a press release, the remarkable project was a collaborative effort involving SETI researchers and experts from both the Alaska Whale Foundation as well as the University of California Davis. Using an underwater speaker, they broadcast the 'contact' call of the humpback whale, which led to a rather amazing moment wherein one of the creatures, dubbed 'Twain,' actually ventured over to their boat and offered a distinct response that scientists recognize as a "greeting signal."
Amazingly, over the next 20 minutes, a veritable conversation unfolded between the scientists and the majestic creature as Twain "responded to each playback call and matched the interval variations between each signal." Speaking to the historic nature of the event, team member Dr. Brenda McCowan marveled that "we believe this is the first such communicative exchange between humans and humpback whales in the humpback 'language.'" Interestingly, beyond the sounds made by the whale in the 'conversation,' the team noted that Twain also created "bubble rings" in the water, which may have been another form of communication exhibited by the creature.
The study applies to the search for aliens in that, should such beings contact the planet, deciphering what they are saying could prove to be a considerable challenge depending on their manner of 'speaking' and whatever non-terrestrial language they might use. The group likened the project to "studying Antarctica as a proxy for Mars" and explained that they intend to examine "intelligent, terrestrial, non-human communication systems to develop filters to apply to any extraterrestrial signals received." To that end, they indicated that the humpback whale was specifically chosen for the study as they are somewhat similar to how one might imagine an alien race as they are highly intelligent and use an array of communication methods.