Astronomical Anomalies: Their Role in the Quest for Extraterrestrial Life

Astronomers occasionally detect an object having unexpected shape, unexplainable photometry, or unprecedented spectra that are inconsistent with our contemporary knowledge of the universe. Upon careful assessment, many of these anomalies are discarded as mere noise, contamination, or faulty analysis. But some anomalies survive scrutiny to yield new astronomical objects and physical processes. Examples of validated anomalies include quasars, pulsars, and periodic Doppler shifts of Sun-like stars caused by the gravitational pull of orbiting planets. Other anomalies persist as mysteries, including Fast Radio Bursts, dark energy, 'Oumuamua as an alien spaceship, and simultaneously vanishing stars. Advanced technological life may present astronomers with anomalies that require carefully designed observations from multiple vantage points simultaneously and with real-time spectroscopy.