Iván Almár

Iván Almár (1930-2021) was a Hungarian astronomer, space researcher, and prominent figure in SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence). He served as vice president of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF) from 1982 to 1985 and president of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences Astronomy Committee from 1980 to 1990. Beginning in the late 1970s, Almár contributed over 30 years to scientific searches for extraterrestrial civilizations, distinguishing SETI from ufology. Key achievements include co-authoring the Rio Scale (2000) with Jill Tarter to assess the credibility of extraterrestrial intelligence detection claims, and developing the San Marino Scale for risks of Earth transmissions. In 2008, he received the SETI League's Giordano Bruno Memorial Award for advancing scientific research on alien civilizations. Almár lectured widely, including at Mindentudás Egyetem in 2002, and co-authored papers on post-detection protocols.