THE first findings from the world鈥檚 only telescope largely devoted to the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) have been released.
The (ATA) in northern California scans for alien radio signals more intensively and over a wider field of view than any previous effort. Sadly, it has not turned up any alien civilisations as yet. But that鈥檚 not all the ATA does. Since going live in 2007, its 42 receivers have been scouring the sky for star-forming hydrogen nebulae and unusual radio blips. The latter may be emitted by black holes gulping matter or by neutron stars merging, though more work is needed to pinpoint the sources.
But these surveys don鈥檛 impact the search for alien life. The ATA multitasks, listening for signals while making other observations. 鈥淭he fact that it can do astronomy and SETI work at the same time is just icing on the cake,鈥� says Jill Tarter of the SETI Institute, which runs the ATA. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no other telescope that can do this.鈥�
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