1990 12 00 OMNI - SETI

Magazine Overview

Title: STARS
Issue: 48
Volume: 14
Date: October 1992
Publisher: Omni
Country: USA
Price: $3.00

This issue of Omni magazine, titled "STARS," explores the enduring question of why, if extraterrestrial life exists, we have not yet encountered it. The cover features a portrait of Thomas R. McDonough, a Caltech physicist, and poses the question, "SWEET NOTHINGS? Here are three reasons why E.T. has not yet phoned Earth."

The Fermi Paradox and the Drake Equation

The issue opens by referencing the famous 1950 question posed by physicist Enrico Fermi to his colleague Edward Teller: "If there are extraterrestrial civilizations, where are they?" This paradox highlights the apparent contradiction between the high probability of alien life existing, as suggested by scientific reasoning, and the complete lack of evidence for it. Radio astronomer Frank Drake's equation is introduced as a method to estimate the probability of life arising in our galaxy. While optimists using the Drake equation arrive at millions of potential technological civilizations, pessimists arrive at near zero. The burden, therefore, falls on optimists to explain this silence.

Explanations for E.T.'s Absence

Thomas R. McDonough, an engineering lecturer at Caltech and coordinator for the Planetary Society's SETI program, offers three primary explanations for the lack of contact:

1. The Quarantine Hypothesis (The Prime Directive): Drawing a parallel to the Star Trek series' "Prime Directive," McDonough suggests that advanced civilizations might intentionally avoid contact with less developed ones to prevent contamination or interference with their natural emergence. This perspective views civilizations that do not yet trade information with others as precious commodities.
2. Advanced Civilizations in Ecstasy: Another possibility is that highly advanced civilizations may have developed methods of inducing permanent ecstasy through drugs, electronic stimulation, or artificial reality. With automatic life-support systems, these beings might live in blissful self-concern, having no interest in exploring or contacting other worlds.
3. Superior Intelligence and Indifference: It's also proposed that aliens might possess an intelligence so vastly superior to ours—perhaps as much as ours is to ants'—that they simply have no interest in communicating with us. They might view us with the same indifference that humans have towards ants.

The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI)

The article then shifts focus to the ongoing efforts to detect extraterrestrial signals through SETI. Jill Tarter, a radio astronomer at NASA's Ames Research Center and coordinator of its SETI program, is prominently featured. Tarter, who has dedicated her career to this search, faces public curiosity and sometimes unusual visitors, including individuals claiming alien origins.

The "Big Ear" and Technological Advancements

The article discusses the "Big Ear" radio telescope and the evolution of SETI projects. Early efforts like Frank Drake's Project Ozma in 1960 surveyed a limited number of stars. NASA's involvement, initially hampered by political opposition (notably from Senator William Proxmire), gained momentum with the approval of a real search program. NASA's current SETI effort, planned for ten years, involves two parts: one group at Ames will use special receivers and radio telescopes (including the dish at Arecibo, Puerto Rico) to examine stars within 80 light-years, while another group at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory will use similar equipment on deep-space tracking telescopes.

The MCSA and Signal Processing

Key technological advancements are highlighted, particularly the multichannel spectrum analyzer (MCSA). Designed at Stanford, the MCSA can divide radio signals into tens of thousands of frequency channels, allowing for simultaneous examination. This is crucial because artificial signals are expected to be narrow-band, making them distinct from natural cosmic sources but harder to tune into precisely. The MCSA is seen as a vital tool for sifting through the vast amount of data generated by radio telescopes.

The SETI Protocol and Challenges

The article touches upon the potential implications of a confirmed signal, referencing a 1986 International Astronomical Federation (IAF) session on the legal, political, and social implications of detecting an extraterrestrial intelligent signal. The IAF subsequently drafted a protocol for handling discoveries, emphasizing independent confirmation, dissemination of information, and consultation before any response is sent.

Physicist Kent Cullers, who is blind, discusses the challenges of defining an "intelligent signal" and the need to look for signals that cannot be produced by natural processes. He compares the data processing to sifting through an entire Encyclopaedia Britannica every second to find a specific combination of letters.

The bounty of nature presents a significant challenge for SETI hunters. Besides the billions of stars and potential frequencies, artificial signals are expected to be narrow-band, requiring precise tuning. Earth's own broadcasts, like those from the Voyager spacecraft, are narrow-band but still relatively weak. The article notes that while early warning defense radars are strong, their beams change constantly. Cullers points out that our own civilization's broadcasts are only marginally detectable at the nearest star.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The issue consistently explores the scientific and philosophical implications of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. It balances the optimistic outlook of SETI proponents with the pragmatic challenges and the profound silence observed so far. The underlying theme is humanity's deep-seated curiosity about its place in the universe and the potential for discovery. The editorial stance, as represented by the featured scientists, is one of continued scientific inquiry and exploration, acknowledging that even if no alien signals are found, the search itself yields valuable knowledge about the cosmos. The article concludes with a sense of wonder and the idea that the quest for answers is a significant endeavor in itself, a milestone in social stability driven by pure curiosity.