Scientists are listening in on sperm whale conversations and studying Earth's strangest microbes to prepare humanity for first contact with extraterrestrial life.

Science fiction has long speculated about the possibility of first contact with an alien species from a distant world and how we might be able to communicate with them. But what if we simply don’t have enough common ground for that to even be possible?

By studying Earth's toughest microbes and complex animal "speech", scientists are reshaping how we search for – and may someday talk to – alien life.