Subject: SETI FAQ: Part 2
Date: 25 Jan 1995 16:54:42 GMT
Organization: Duke University
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Begin Part 2...
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What will happen if a signal is received? Will information be
withheld?
In order to confirm that a signal is from another civilization, at least
two observatories must be able to receive it. Once an artificial signal
is confirmed as being of extraterrestrial intelligent origin, the
discovery will be announced as quickly and as widely as possible. A
Declaration of Principles Concerning Activities Following the Detection
of Extraterrestrial Intelligence, endorsed by six international space
organizations, addresses how to make such an announcement. The SETI
Institute has a plan for action that resembles the Declaration of
Principles. The intent of the plan is to ensure that news is distributed
rapidly and widely. In fact, as part of the process of confirming a
potential signal, SETI Institute scientists will contact other
observatories to investigate candidate signals with their own equipment.
How will we know what the signal means?
If the signal is intentional, it is likely to be easy to decode. In order
to send or receive a signal over interstellar distances, a civilization
must understand basic science and mathematics. Hence, a message from
another civilization would probably use a language based on universal
mathematical and physical principles. Signals that a civilization uses
for its own purposes may be difficult to decipher. Such emissions may
have no detectable message content.
Will the senders have any way of knowing that their signal is received?
Not right away. For the senders to know, we would have to send a message
in reply. The SETI Institute has no plan for replying. Under an
International SETI Post-detection Protocol now under consideration, the
nations of the Earth would decide together whether and how to reply.
If we are looking for a signal, are we also sending any signals?
Project Phoenix is designed only to listen for signals, not to send them.
However, since the early part of this century, the cultures of the planet
Earth have been unintentionally transmitting signals into space -- radio,
television, and other communications transmissions as well as military
radar. Our earliest TV transmissions have traveled out into space more
than fifty light years.
A few mostly symbolic intentional messages have been sent. One message,
broadcast in 1974 from the Arecibo Observatory, was a simple picture
describing our Solar System, the elements important for life, the
structure of the DNA molecule, and the form of a human being. The
message was transmitted in the direction of the globular star cluster,
M13, about 25,000 light years away.
What if no signal is detected?
Even if the search does not detect a signal from a distant technology, it
is likely to provide many benefits to society. The technology developed
to search for faint signals from distant planets can be applied to more
down-to-earth problems in medical diagnostic imaging, resource exploration,
and materials testing. The SETI Institute, with funding from NSF and NASA,
has already developed an important spin-off from the HRMS project, science
curriculum enhancement materials for grades three through nine. The
subject of extraterrestrial civilizations provides an almost irresistible
magnet for attracting young people to the study of science and mathematics.
What do other scientists think of the search for extraterrestrial
civilizations?
From the Report of the Astronomy Survey Committee, National Academy of
Sciences, 1972:
"... More and more scientists feel that contact with other civilizations
is no longer something beyond our dreams but a natural event in the
history of mankind that will perhaps occur in the lifetime of many of us ...
In the long run, this may be one of science's most important and most
profound contributions to mankind and to our civilization."
From the Report of the Astronomy Survey Committee, National Academy of
Sciences, 1982:
"... It is hard to imagine a more exciting astronomical discovery or one
that would have greater impact on human perceptions than the detection of
extraterrestrial intelligence."
From the Report of the Astronomy Survey Committee, National Academy of
Sciences, 1991:
"... The discovery in the last decade of planetary disks (around other
stars), and the continuing discovery of highly complex organic molecules
in the interstellar medium, lend even greater scientific support to
this enterprise."
How much will Project Phoenix cost?
About $3 million/year which could be realized either through commitments
for annual contributions or from an endowment of about $100 million. To
put it in perspective, this amounts to a little more than a penny per
American per year.
Why should we spend millions of dollars on this project when we face a
hugebudget deficit and homeless people live on our streets?
A society must invest in its future. Over the last few centuries,
scientific research has dramatically improved the quality of life and
improved our understanding of the universe. The SETI is based on recent
discoveries in many fields of science that indicate that other planetary
systems and even extraterrestrial life are highly probable. As with many
scientific programs, the SETI has potential spin-offs of advanced
technology that may benefit the U.S. and its citizens. If successful,
the knowledge that we are not alone may have an impact on society as
profound and long lasting as when Copernicus removed the Earth from the
center of our Universe.
Does Project Phoenix look for UFO's?
No. The search strategy is designed to detect signals from technological
civilizations elsewhere in the Galaxy. It has nothing to do with UFO's.
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GLOSSARY
DNA Deoxyribonucleic Acid, the molecule of genetic inheritance.
DOE Department of Energy.
HRMS High Resolution Microwave Survey.
IAU International Astronomical Union.
JPL Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
LIGHT YEAR The distance that light travels in one year, about six
trillion miles.
META Megachannel ExtraTerrestrial Assay, a SETI Project
supported by the
Planetary Society.
MHz Megahertz, a unit of frequency, one million cycles per second.
NSF National Science Foundation.
POLARIZATION Electromagnetic radiation that exhibits different
properties in different directions at right angles to the line of
energy propagation is said to be polarized.
SERENDIP Search for Extraterrestrial Radio Emission from Nearby
Developed Intelligent Populations, an ongoing University of California,
Berkeley SETI project.
SETI Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence.
USGS United States Geological Survey.
______________________________________________________________________
For more information contact: p_backus@seti-inst.edu
or:
SETI Institute
2035 Landings Drive
Mountain View, CA 94043
______________________________________________________________________
SETI Institute Home Page
General SETI Information
Project Phoenix Information
______________________________________________________________________
Metro Link, Inc. - Fort Lauderdale, FL +1.305.970.7353
webmaster@flsig.org
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