SETI Research
Millimeter waves for SETI
My SETI search is not the first done using millimeter waves. Mine however is the first in these frequency bands.
The search will use millimeter waves following the premise (in my upcoming book, GJ139):
An advanced civilization, will try to contact us using the same frequency as a naturally occurring signal, in this case around 136GHz, the same frequency as that emitted by the Orion Molecular cloud in the millimeter wave band;
They will contact us in that frequency but synchronized using a natural clock, a pulsar;
They will transmit using an unknown modulation, but with narrow bandwidth.
The data will be stored, and available for analysis by anyone using signal processing tools.
The search will be broadcast live via updates on this page. Questions can be sent to the observing team via email. Please return to this web site for additional information.
See you all on November 1, 2006!
Weather Information
The frequencies used will be in the 130-170GHz range. Since the transmission of signals in this frequency depends on the humidity level of the atmosphere, the weather is paramount. The Tau parameter is the one used for the millimeter transmission level. The lower the better. The current condition is shown below:
http://cleardarksky.com/csk/getcsk.php?id=KittAZ”
And the weather at SMT (another millimeter wave telescope in South Eastern Arizona) is given here:
http://aro.as.arizona.edu/~web/weather/tau_weather.html
The current night sky at Kitt Peak is:
http://nightskylive.net/kp/annotated.jpg
and finally the complete weather picture is given by clicking the page below:
http://observatories.hodar.com/kittpeak/index.html
*the 12m is available for other users. Contact Peter Vekinis (peter@vekinis.com) for information.
