How long have astronomers been looking for extraterrestrial signals?
The first scientific paper on using radio waves to transmit information over interstellar distances was published in the magazine Nature in 1959 by physicists Phillip Morrison and Giuseppe Cocconi. In the following year, Frank Drake (now Chairman of the Board of the SETI Institute) conducted the first radio search for evidence of technology in other solar systems using an 85-foot antenna at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Green Bank, West Virginia. Drake called his search Project Ozma, and observed two sun-like stars which are about 12 light years away. Since then, more than 60 searches have been conducted by dozens of astronomers in several countries. However, note that the technology of today’s searches dwarfs that of earlier efforts. Project Phoenix is estimated to be 100 trillion times more effective than Project Ozma.
The first scientific paper on using radio waves to transmit information over interstellar distances was published in the magazine Nature in 1959 by physicists Phillip Morrison and Giuseppe Cocconi. In the following year, Frank Drake (now Chairman of the Board of the SETI Institute) conducted the first radio search for evidence of technology in other solar systems using an 85-foot antenna at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Green Bank, West Virginia. Drake called his search Project Ozma, and observed two sun-like stars which are about 12 light years away. Since then, more than 60 searches have been conducted by dozens of astronomers in several countries. However, note that the technology of today’s searches dwarfs that of earlier efforts. Project Phoenix is estimated to be 100 trillion times more effective than Project Ozma. Project Phoenix is the only targeted star search now running, and is unsurpassed in sensitivity and comprehensive coverage of frequencies and signal type
