The Little Book of Aliens

“With wit and brio, Frank separates current nonsense about aliens from the serious and fascinating search for extraterrestrial life.” —Carlo Rovelli, New York Times bestselling author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics

From astrophysicist Adam Frank, a little book on the biggest questions in our search for extraterrestrial life and the field of astrobiology, questions we stand ready to answer.

Everyone is curious about life in the Universe, UFOs and whether ET is out there. Over the course of his thirty-year career as an astrophysicist, Adam Frank has consistently been asked about the possibility of intelligent life in the universe. Are aliens real? Where are they? Why haven’t we found them? What happens if we do?

We’ve long been led to believe that astronomers spend every night on the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI), but the truth is we have barely started looking. Not until now have we even known where to look or how. In The Little Book of Aliens, Frank, a leading researcher in the field, takes us on a journey to all that we know about the possibility of life outside planet Earth and shows us the cutting-edge science that has brought us to this unique moment in human history: the one where we go find out for ourselves.

In this small book with big stakes, Frank gives us a rundown of everything we need to know, from the scientific origins of the search for intelligent life, the Fermi Paradox, the discovery of exoplanets, the Kardashev Scale, the James Webb Telescope, as well as UAPs and their conspiracy theories. Drawing from his own work and that of other scientists studying the possibility of alien civilizations, he brings together the latest scientific thinking, data, ideas, and discoveries to equip us with the critical facts as we stand at what may be the last moment in human history where we still believe we are all alone. This book is about everything we do—and do not—know about life, intelligent or otherwise beyond Earth. In language that is engaging, entertaining and fun, The Little Book of Aliens provides a comprehensive first look at how close we are to finding out if others actually exist—and if they do, what they might be like.

Humankind is on the precipice of finding its neighbors. What comes next? No person is better suited to answer that question—and lead the search—than Adam Frank. 

This essential guide separates scientific fact from science fiction to answer the biggest questions in cosmology:

• The Great Silence: Explore the Fermi Paradox and the Drake Equation—the essential frameworks scientists use to ask: if the universe is so vast, where is everybody?
• UFOs vs. UAPs: Get a sober, scientific perspective on the videos and government reports that have captured our imagination. What are they, and what aren’t they?
• The Exoplanet Revolution: Learn how the discovery of billions of planets orbiting other stars has completely transformed the search for life, giving us a map of where to look.
• Technosignatures & Biosignatures: Discover the cutting-edge methods scientists are developing to find signs of alien life—both microbial and technological—by studying distant planetary atmospheres.

ADAM FRANK is the Helen F. and Fred H. Gowen Professor in the department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Rochester. A Carl Sagan Medal winner from the American Astronomical Society, he is also the author of Light of the Stars and was the science adviser for Marvel’s Doctor Strange. Frank is the principal investigator on NASA’s first grant to study technosignatures—signs of advanced civilizations on other worlds—and his current work focuses on the evolution of life and planets, the “Astrobiology of the Anthropocene,” and the long-term trajectory of civilizations. He lives in Rochester, New York.