Quantum communication technology may allow for information to be securely sent through interstellar space without being disrupted by gravity or solar winds
Physics
1 June 2022
An observatory tracking satellites with a laser Dmitry Evteev/Alamy
If aliens wanted to send us messages from 30 light years away, their best bet may be to use X-rays and quantum technology.
On Earth, researchers have previously encoded information into the quantum states of particles of light, or photons. Using the photons’ special properties, they have transmitted that information securely. Research teams have sent the data to other labs around the world – as a proof of concept for a quantum internet – and to satellites orbiting Earth.
