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SETI
- Allen Telescope Array
- Optical SETI
- Interstellar Message Construction
- Project Phoenix 1995-2004
- Background Science
- History of SETI
- Center for SETI Research Team
- Other people doing SETI
- Hollywood's View of SETI
Patience
by Tom Kilsdonk, Project Phoenix Software Engineer
Just outside my room in the North Visitor's Quarters of Arecibo Observatory, a fairly large spider web hovers, strung between two pillars. I studied the spider while I waited for the rain to subside a bit before taking the short walk up to the Observatory, where I would prepare for my shift on the telescope. I imagine spiders are used to waiting patiently for something to tumble into their webs. Luck came to this one rather quickly, when a fly happened by (not so lucky for the fly, of course) while I watched.
Very often, when a visitor stops by our consoles to watch us work for a while, they'll say something like: "Well, I'm here, so I bet you'll find 'The Signal' tonight". That would be great, but so far we haven't been as lucky as my neighbor the spider. Our systems have to search many millions of radio channels, one star at a time. We have to be prepared for the long haul.
Still, like the spider, having patience and persistence is essential to increasing the odds. And who knows, maybe one day soon, when one of our visitors predicts detection of an ET signal during their presence, they'll be right.