Story highlights New radio telescope will be the world's largest when operational

"Sky Eye" will be able to search distant galaxies for radio signals and extraterrestrial life

FAST telescope plays key role in China's bold space program

Hong Kong (CNN) Is there anybody out there?

A massive engineering and scientific project in China is expected to take us one step closer in our quest to discover if we are truly alone in the universe.

The country's military-led space program is constructing the world's largest radio telescope, the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope, or FAST, and Chinese state media recently released images of the amazing structure nearing completion.

The massive construction project -- when completed the dish itself will be the size of 30 football pitches -- has the potential to be a game-changer for our understanding of the universe, and our search for life on other planets.

When it is finished it will potentially be able to detect radio signals -- and potentially, signs of life -- from planets orbiting a million stars and solar systems.

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