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The sun sets over the Ohio State University radio telescope's 3-1/2 acre aluminum ground-plane for the last time, as radio astronomers and SETIzens of the world bid farewell to an old friend. The "Big Ear" telescope, home to the world's longest-running SETI program, is being demolished this week to make way for a commercial golf course. SETI League photo

27 December 1997

Last month The SETI League's executive director met with legendary nuclear physicist Dr. Edward Teller at his home on the Stanford University campus, to discuss our Project Argus sky survey. Teller has a longstanding interest in SETI, dating back to his days at Los Alamos National Laboratory, where he was witness to Dr. Enrico Fermi's famous question "where are they?" Teller has his own answer to the Fermi Paradox, and confided in Dr. Shuch that he is actually a Martian (see this column). SETI League photo

20 December 1997

We're three for three! The SETI League has won yet another trophy for science songwriting, at Philcon, the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society's annual convention. Cosmic Carl, our musical tribute to the late Dr. Carl Sagan, has been awarded First Place: Science in the 1997 Philcon Filk Song Contest. Last year we won a first place for The Rock That's From The Fourth Rock From The Sun. The year before that we won second place for The SETI League Anthem. See this Press Release for further details. SETI League photo

13 December 1997

At a recent meeting in Mountain View CA, Project Phoenix director Dr. D. Kent Cullers (WA6TWX) collaborates with SETI League executive director H. Paul Shuch on the miniMETA multi-channel spectrum analyzer design. It was a block diagram of Cullers' in an early SETI book which inspired the current generation of Project Argus stations. SETI League photo

6 December 1997

The Down East Microwave 23LNA, a preamp for the 23 cm ham band, is easily modified for SETI at the water-hole by removing one turn of wire from the input inductor (seen here to the left of the FET). In noise figure competition at last month's Microwave Update conference, the modified unit measured in at 14.9 dB gain, 1.02 dB noise figure at the 21 cm hydrogen line. Priced at $50 in kit form, $75 assembled and tested, this easily modified unit is an economical path to superb SETI performance. SETI League photo

29 November 1997

Texas Instruments Inc. has made a major contribution of Digital Signal Processing hardware and software to The SETI League. Last week TI Technical Sales Representative Tricia Chambers presented SETI League president Richard Factor with a complete TMS320C6x development environment, for use in our miniMETA multi-channel spectrum analyzer project. SETI League photo

22 November 1997

Executive director H. Paul Shuch and SETI pioneer Philip Morrison met last week in Boston, to go over the latest changes to The SETI League Technical Manual. They contrasted this blueprint for building a SETI station on no budget whatever, with the Project Cyclops report, an outline for the greatest radio telescope never built (and a study on how to do SETI with a $20,000,000,000 budget). Dr. Morrison, who co-authored the first modern SETI paper in 1959, believes that if there are interstellar beacons in the cosmos, our own Project Argus sky survey stands a reasonable chance of detecting them. Phylis Morrison photo

15 November 1997

Australian member Leon Darcy uses these two 20-foot dishes on a 100-meter baseline as an interferometer. Located near Sydney, the antennas were part of a 62 dish array called Fleurs. Other Australian SETI enthusiasts are acquiring additional dishes from the array, courtesy of the University of Western Sydney and CSIRO. Darcy and Eastern Australia coordinator Noel Welstead are working to incorporate two of these antennas into a Very Long Baseline Interferometer (VLBI) with a 1200 km baseline, at 1445 MHz. ETRC photo

8 November 1997

For stable, low noise, broadband gain over the 1 to 2 GHz range, many SETI League members are finding it hard to beat the performance of this GaAs MMIC preamplifier, designed two years ago in the SETI League lab and available in kit or assembled form from Down East Microwave, Inc. Model SETI-LNA can be used as a moderate performance front end, a second stage to overcome feedline loss, or anywhere a little extra microwave gain is needed. Design details appear here. SETI League photo

1 November 1997

SETI League executive director Dr. H. Paul Shuch spoke (and sang) to a packed house at last summer's American MENSA Annual Gathering in Birmingham, Alabama. If you wish to catch his next presentation, check our Conference Calendar for upcoming engagements. If you wish to book Paul for an upcoming conference, email our secretary. SETI League photo

25 October 1997

The SETI League is saddened to learn of the passing on October 12 of charter life member Orville N. Greene, one of our staunchest supporters. Mr. Greene, a New York City patent attorney and civic leader, lent both his professional services and his financial support to The SETI League during its formative years. He is seen here dedicating the first Project Argus telescope on 21 April, 1996. KE2RC photo

18 October 1997

SETI League member Tom Pierson flies the Flag of Earth in his Mountain View, California office. This banner graces SETI facilities the world over, including SETI League headquarters in New Jersey. Pierson serves as Executive Director of the SETI Institute, with which we enjoy no formal affiliation, but close professional ties (including our joint publishing last year of the Project Cyclops reprint). SETI League photo

11 October 1997

Peter Wright and Angelika Gerke hosted the first European Radio Astronomy Congress last month at Heppenheim Germany. They are seen here with the 3-meter radio telescope at the conference venue (Starkenburg Observatory). This Dicke-switched hydrogen line instrument is the oldest private radio telescope in Germany. The European Radio Astronomy Club hopes to be able to allocate some of its time to parasitic SETI. Click here for related photos. SETI League photo

4 October 1997

Charter member John Richardson writes, "I got this like new dish for $100 by driving around in the country and looking for a house where the owner had a 3 meter dish, and also had a small 18 inch dish. Sure enough, the three places I stopped at all tried to sell me their systems. The last guy, after some grumbling about losing money, agreed to sell me his dish only. The thing was only 3 months old." WA7CRE photo

27 September 1997

15 August 1997, the 20th anniversary of the "Wow!" signal, was also a sad occasion. The land under the Big Ear radio telescope has been sold to make way for a commercial golf course, and the antenna itself will be razed by the end of 1997. Not wanting the demolition crew to strike the first blow, in a symbolic act of destruction Dr. Jerry "Wow!" Ehman takes bolt-cutters to the declination reflector, as Radio Observatory assistant diector (and SETI League technical advisor) Dr. Robert Dixon looks on. Click for related photos. SETI League photo

20 September 1997

Trevor Unsworth, The SETI League's co-coordinator for the United Kingdom, is seen here with his 3.5 meter dish. Trevor and fellow volunteer Ken Chattenton are largely responsible for the explosive growth in SETI League membership and participation in their region. They have done countless radio, television, magazine and newspaper interviews, and have written or telephoned nearly every SETI League member and prospect in the UK. Trevor is currently working on putting together a SETI-UK Web Site. G0ECP photo

13 September 1997

On 15 August 1997, radio astronomers and SETI League members from around the US gathered at the Ohio State Radio Observatory, to mark the 20th anniversary of the reception of the "Wow!" signal, the most credible (and tantalizing) candidate SETI signal to date. This cake depicts the actual "Wow!" computer printout made famous in the TV Series "The X-Files." Click for related photos. SETI League photo

6 September 1997

Global Positioning Satellite interference on 1575.7820 MHz USB, detected by SETI League member Ian Drummond, VE6IXD, on 21 June 1997. Ian says, "I assume it is a navigation signal and not the one we have been waiting for!" The Doppler pattern evident in this image is characteristic of mid-orbit satellites. The appearance of this signal should help to dispel the myth that pseudo-random-noise coded spread-spectrum signals are indistinguishable from the background noise! In fact, though difficult to decode without the proper key, the presence of these signals is quite evident. Should other civilizations be using spread spectrum communications, our chances of detecting them are not necessarily diminished. VE6IXD image

30 August 1997

Swept frequency response of the Down East Microwave 23LNA, a preamp for the 23 cm ham band, modified for SETI at the water-hole. Initial gain peaked at +17 dB at 1296 MHz, and dropped to +12 dB and +7 dB at the 1420 MHz hydrogen line, and the 1660 MHz hydroxyl line, respectively. After modification, the gain figures at those three frequencies are +13 B, +15 dB, and +12 dB, respectively. Noise figure appears flat at about 0.8 dB. These results were achieved by removing one turn of wire from one inductor. Priced at $50 in kit form, $75 assembled and tested, this easily modified unit is an economical path to superb SETI performance. SETI League photo

23 August 1997

The SETI League hydrogen line downconverter previously featured here is designed to drive a 144 MHz SSB receiver. One of the best is seen here, the R2 receiver designed by Rick Campbell, KK7B, and published in QST for January 1993. The unit is available in kit form from Kanga US. Along with the R2 kit (priced at $109 US), you may want to use the companion LM2 "Little Mother Board," sold for $80 US in kit form. Click here to see how SETI League engineers have modified the R2 to optimize it for wider-bandwidth SETI. Kanga US photo

16 August 1997

Members of the Society of Amateur Radio Astronomers (SARA) visit the construction site of the 100 meter diameter Green Bank Telescope (GBT) during their 1997 Annual Meeting. About a dozen SETI League members were in attendance. The antenna mount is seen behind the group, with the dish surface support structure on the ground to the left. More SARA pictures may be found here. NP2DP photo

9 August 1997

The warm side of member Denis Jakac's amateur SETI station utilizes the popular Icom 7000 receiver, along with a Timewave DSP-599 ZX digital signal processor and a Pentium Pro 150 MHz computer with SoundBlaster 16 sound card. VE3ZXN photo

2 August 1997

Project Argus pioneer Denis Jakac shows off his modified 10 foot mesh TVRO dish with 1 - 2 GHz helix feed. The first amateur SETI station on the air in Canada, Denis' Toronto station is unique in that he employs a Peltier-cooled low-noise amplifier. VE3ZXN photo

26 July 1997

At last March's Balticon science fiction convention, Yoji Kondo of the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center spoke on future directions for space exploration. A member of NASA's SETI advisory committee in the 1970s, Dr. Kondo is a longtime SETI proponent. He is well known to many of our members as a science fiction novelist, under the pen name Eric Kotani. SETI League photo

19 July 1997

Luc Bodson, SETI League coordinator for Belgium, was the subject of this feature article in the Belgian monthly magazine NETWERK, published 12 June 1997. Article copyright © 1997 by NETWERK

12 July 1997

The Warner Brothers film Contact, based upon the 1985 Carl Sagan novel, opens in the US on 11 July 1997. The film deals with the succesful results of a fictional Project Argus SETI survey. See the Contact Web site for more information about the film. See this press release for information about the real Project Argus. And by all means, see the movie! Warner Brothers poster

5 July 1997

At the first annual Southeastern VHF Conference in Marrietta GA last April, SETI League executive director H. Paul Shuch met with Amsat president Bill Tynan, to discuss the possibility of joint technical projects for the two sister organizations. The Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation and the SETI League became mutually affiliated societies last October. SETI League photo

28 June 1997

Ever the schoolteacher, science fiction writer Hal Clement shares his fossil collection with interested youth at the Balticon science fiction convention, 30 March 1997. Mr. Clement's latest story deals with the type of charcoal-based lifeforms which he speculates might have evolved on the recently confirmed planet 51 Pegasai B, which has a surface temperature on the order of 1000 degrees C. SETI League photo

21 June 1997

The SETI League is pleased to welcome Gerard Cavan, VE3EYR, as a new member. Gerry, who resides in Wilsonville ONT Canada, is seen here at the console of his most impressive amateur television (ATV) station. VE3EYR photo

14 June 1997

Executive director H. Paul Shuch brings the crowd up to date on SETI at the Baltimore Science Fiction Society's annual convention, 29 March 1997. This is the third consecutive year in which Dr. Shuch has been a Balticon science guest. SETI League photo

7 June 1997

Biochemist and dairy farmer Wayne Thresher is not only The SETI League's first member in New Zealand, he is also our 500th member. Dr. Thresher has been quite active on the email discussion group, soliciting opinions about receivers, preamplifiers, and the challenges of building his own parabolic reflector. We expect great things from his planned Southern SETI station. See this Press Release for further details. Photo courtesy of Wayne Thresher

31 May 1997

Author Marcus Chown flew in from London to interview SETI League members and officials at our 1997 Annual Memebership Meeting. Chown is well qualified to write about SETI, being trained as an astrophysicist at CalTech. His article appears in the 19 April 1997 issue of New Scientist. Click here for more 1997 Annual Meeting photos. SETI League photo

24 May 1997

The SETI Institute's Project Phoenix targeted search of nearby sun-like stars resumed on 4 May 1997, from the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Green Bank WV. In addition to the 140 foot NRAO radio telescope, the group is employing this 100 foot dish at Georgia Tech's Woodbury Research Facility, as a follow-up detection device, or FUDD. Click here for more Woodbury site photos. SETI League photo

17 May 1997

SETI League member Dan Fox, speaking about the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence at the Confabulation 9 science fiction convention in Bloomington IN, the weekend of March 7 - 9, 1997. KF9ET photo

10 May 1997

Executive Director H. Paul Shuch has announced that he is retiring from academia, effective 15 August 1997, in order to continue heading The SETI League for an additional five years. With leadership continuity assured, the SETI League is now able to begin implementing some of its ambitious long-range plans. See this Press Release for further details. Dr. Shuch's bio appears here. SETI League photo

3 May 1997

New SETI League hydrogen line (1420 MHz) to 2-meter (144 MHz) downconverter, first demonstrated at our Annual Meeting on 22 March 1997. At the Southeastern VHF Conference two weeks later, the prototype measured in at 1.85 dB noise figure and 49 dB conversion gain. This converter boasts over 50 dB image rejection and 30 dB spurious rejection. It will be offered in kit form by Down East Microwave, for $130. Click here for more hardware development photos. SETI League photo

26 April 1997

Ray Rector, WA4NJP, one of the undisputed masters of Earth-Moon-Earth (EME, or "moonbounce") communications, welcomes several SETI League members to his station. The tour, in conjunction with the first annual Southeastern VHF Conference, took place on 6 April 1997. Click here for more WA4NJP photos. SETI League photo

19 April 1997

Project Argus pioneer Daniel Boyd Fox, who won the SETI League's 1997 Bruno Award, uses this re-purposed satellite TV dish for amateur SETI. His station was well documented in our Technical Manual, and served as a prototype for several other members' stations. Dan is the author of the popular SetiFox Digital Signal Processing and Control program. KF9ET photo

12 April 1997

The SETI League's STAR-1 receiver design initiative has evolved into this block diagram, for the miniMETA receiver. The project was unveiled at the SETI League's membership meeting last month. The name is a tribute to the META (Mega-channel Extra-Terrestrial Assay) reciever designed in the 1980's by Harvard University's Dr. Paul Horowitz, W1HFA. Since META was named by Dr. Carl Sagan, we intend this design to honor his memory. Circuit details of this work in progress will be posted to our online Tech Manual as they become available. SETI League diagram

5 April 1997

Top officials of International Amateur Radio Union Region 2 visited the SETI Booth at Tropical Hamboree in Miami last month, to meet with SETI League executive director H. Paul Shuch. President Tom Atkins, VE3CDM (l) and secretary Pedro Seidemann, YV5BPG (r) were impressed with SETI's global nature and amateur involvement. They indicated the IARU's willingness to help SETI draw upon two areas of strong ham interest, microwave technology and the Internet. SETI League photo

29 March 1997

Project Argus pioneer Daniel Boyd Fox, KF9ET, received the Second Annual Giordano Bruno Award at the SETI League's membership meeting on 22 March, 1997. Fox, who developed the SetiFox computer program used by many SETI League members, also draw the system block diagram which defines many of our members' stations. SETI League photo

22 March 1997

Swept frequency response of a hydrogen-line AmpliFilter being tested at The SETI League's microwave lab. One of the SETI League's hardware initiatives is the development of standard, frequency-selective gain blocks for use in the next generation of microwave receivers. AmpliFilters for the hydroxyl line, and other interesting SETI bands, are also under development. Watch our online Tech Manual in the weeks ahead, for schematics and construction details of these versatile gain blocks. SETI League photo

15 March 1997

SETI League advisor Dr. Malcolm Raff pores over the schematic of a proposed new SETI receiver. The project, code-named STAR-1 (for Spectral and Temporal Analysis Receiver), is being spearheaded by executive director Dr. H. Paul Shuch, who met with Raff in San Francisco last week to discuss the design. Watch for project details on this Web site in the months ahead. SETI League photo

8 March 1997

American Radio Relay League president Rod Stafford, KB6ZV (l) stopped by the SETI League booth at last month's Tropical Hamboree in Miami, to greet his former neighbor, SETI League executive director H. Paul Shuch, N6TX. The ARRL has been very generous in its support and encouragement of amateur SETI. SETI League photo

1 March 1997

This week we honor the memory of SETI League charter member Nick Marshall, W6OLO, who passed away just over a year ago. Nick was a true pioneer in amateur microwave communications, and was building a SETI station at the time of his death. He was the first Technical Director of Project Oscar, Inc, the designer of the world's first non-Government funded communications satellite, and the inspiration behind Project Moonray, which almost put an amateur repeater on the Moon in the early 1970s. See Nick's obituary on the 50 MHz and Up Group site. Photo courtesy of WA6KBL

22 February 1997

Annual Open House and Membership Meeting The SETI League's third annual Membership Meeting will be held at our headquarters, 433 Liberty Street, Little Ferry NJ 07643, on Saturday, 22 March 1997, at 1400 hours Eastern Standard Time. A noon open house will precede the meeting. Members, the press, and the public are cordially invited. Those planning to attend should email rsvp@setileague.org. See meeting announcement and agenda. SETI League photo

15 February 1997

The high-performance SETI feedhorn featured as Photo of the Week for 26 October 1996 is now in commercial production. Manufactured by Radio Astronomy Supplies of Roswell, GA, the feed is offered at a discount to SETI league members. See related press release and technical article. EA3UM photo

8 February 1997

Anomalous signal detected by SETI League member Dan Fox last month, while preparing to scan the Crab Nebula just below the hydrogen line frequency. This signal could well be satellite or terrestrial interference, or equipment malfunction. It could just as easily be an astrophysical phenomenon. Without follow-up detection, we'll never know. This experience underscores the importance of pairing up our sky survey participants for instantaneous signal verification. See the related editorial. KF9ET image

1 February 1997

The SETI League Now Takes Credit Cards! We are pleased to announce that it is finally possible to pay your SETI League dues and membership premiums by credit card. Effective immediately, you may post payments and contributions to your Visa or MasterCard account. Simply send us a signed piece of paper with the amount being contributed, your credit card type, account number, expiration date, and your name exactly as it appears on the card. You may print out and mail us this form, but for your safety, we suggest that you not send credit card numbers by email or over the Internet.

25 January 1997

The SETI League was featured in the January 1997 issue of Wired magazine, in an article on page 70 titled "Suburbia Meets the Final Frontier." The article included this picture of our executive director. SETI League photo by Muriel Hykes

18 January 1997

Optical and IR astronomer and League member Dr. Amanda Baker is scheduled to deliver a SETI lecture on 18 January 1997, at the Asociación Chilena de Astronomía y Astronáutica, Santiago de Chile. For further information, link to the ACHAYA Home Page. Photo © 1996 by Gordon W. Brignal

11 January 1997

SETI League members H. Paul Shuch and Muriel Hykes were married in a private ceremony on December 30, 1996, in Williamsport PA, with five of their seven children in attendance. Dr. Shuch, who serves as The SETI League's executive director, is a radio astronomer and engineering professor, well versed in the factors on the left side of the Drake Equation. With degrees in biology and psychology, Ms. Hykes, self-described SETI League Den Mother, is more expert at the factors on the equation's right side. They look forward to a lifetime of productive collaboration. SETI League photo

4 January 1997

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