What was Project Phoenix?
The SETI Institute’s Project Phoenix was the most ambitious search for extraterrestrial intelligence ever undertaken. From February 1995 to March 2004, Phoenix conducted three observing campaigns on some of the world’s largest radio telescopes, targeting specific stars for scrutiny. Entirely funded by private donations, Phoenix carried on the mission of the NASA SETI Targeted Search, which was ended by a budget-conscious Congress in 1993. After the HRMS Targeted Search was canceled, the Institute quickly moved to retain the core science and engineering team of that effort, and with help from its subcontractors, upgraded and expanded the Targeted Search electronics and software. That equipment is now being used to search the vicinities of nearby stars for signs of technological civilizations, the core activity of Project Phoenix. In addition to conducting this mammoth search, the SETI Institute is also spurring a parallel effort to design and develop systems of much greater capability,
