The spectrum of opinions on extraterrestrial life - The astrosociological study among Russian astronomers

This paper presents the results of a pilot astrosociological survey of members of the International Astronomical Union from the Russian Federation (N = 27, ~6% of the total). The purpose of the study was to obtain a range of opinions of professional astronomers on the existence of extraterrestrial life, as well as the ethical and practical aspects of its search. Respondents answered 11 questions anonymously, with the option to write their own answer if the suggested ones were not satisfactory. Key findings: 74.1% (20) believe in existence of primitive extraterrestrial life in the Universe, of which 16 believe in its existence in our Galaxy. 66.7% (18) consider the existence of intelligent life likely elsewhere in the Universe. 85.2% (23) support the search for simple life, 63% (17) support the search for signals from intelligent civilizations, but only 29.6% (8) support sending their own messages. Regarding the decision on how to respond to a hypothetical extraterrestrial message, 37% (10) prefer a decision by a group of scientists, while 18.5% (5) prefer a planetary referendum. Due to the small sample, the results are preliminary, but demonstrate the applicability of astrosociological methods in the Russian academic community and allow us to formulate hypotheses for future, expanded research.