SETI
Bertrand Russell wrote, "There are two possibilities. Maybe we are alone. Maybe we are not. Both are equally frightening (Jakosky 1)." The question of life in the universe is one that leaves many in a state of bewilderment. It becomes even more interesting when it leads to another question - that of intelligent life in the universe. Finding other intelligent civilizations among the interstellar space would greatly affect every aspect of our existence. Conversely, not finding such a civilization would force us to examine the purpose of our own existence. To help answer the question, astronomers and scientists set up a program in search for extraterrestrial intelligence. This program, or SETI, was set up to verify, by observation that extraterrestrial life does exist. SETI tries to prove this by picking up and analyzing radio signals by means of satellites and advanced computers (Heidmann 116). The history of the SETI program is quite interesting. It started back in 1959 with the help of two famous Cornell University physicists, Guiseppi Cocconi and Phil Morrison. Both claimed that it would be possible to communicate with other potential extraterrestrial life in space by the use of techniques used in radio astr
2. Jakosky, Bruce. The Search for Life on Other Planets. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998. In the 1960's the Soviet Union dominated much of the SETI program. However in the 1970's NASA's Ames Research center, located in California began to take over. After nearly a decade of study and preliminary research, the NASA headquarters fully funded and adopted the SETI program. However, five years later Congress ruled the program a foolish unnecessary scientific endeavor that wasted valuable funding. Congress then decided to not allow NASA to support SETI and terminated the funding ("History of SETI"). Despite the obstacle, the SETI program was reborn, forming the SETI Institute. It's first privately funded project, Project Phoenix, is the world's most sensitive and comprehensive search for extraterrestrial intelligence that listens to radio signals being transmitted our way. The project focuses on Northern Stars by scanning only those that are sun-like and are more capable of supporting life (Heidmann 146). Whether we are alone, or whether we have company among us in the universe, is a mind-boggling question that still remains to be left unanswered. Through research and scientific study, we one day may be able to determine the answer. Or perhaps we will never know. It is the fear of the unknown that drives many of the researches onward into the discovery of extraterrestrial intelligence, and hopefully one day, all this hard work will pay off! 5. "Project Omar." SETI Institute. 1999. SETI Institute. 28 January 2000 http://www.seti.org/science/ozma.html.
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Approximate Word count = 1834
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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