technosignature

The terms technosignature and technomarker refer to signs of technology, i.e., evidence of technology, such as produced by intelligent beings. Identifying such a sign is a key goal of search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI). The sign would qualify as a biosignature but would imply more: life developed to the point that its technology produces such signs.

There are obviously many possible signs, but searches are naturally focused on such signs that are detectable from our distance. A radio (or other EMR) signal that suggests communication is an obvious one, but an example of a less-obvious sign would be atmospheric constituents not normally produced by nature, e.g., detected on an extra-solar planet through differential spectroscopy.

The terms biosignature and technosignature are common in astronomy and SETI, but their definitions could apply to Earth paleontology as well.