SRI International - Hat Creek Radio Observatory

In response to Andrew Phillips: Hi I'm the lead scientist working with the ATA and doing SETI observations. Whoever you talked to, it was not me. I can reassure you that if we found a signal, we have no special plans to notify the government at all. Instead, our plan is to call up our friends in Australia working with the Parkes radio telescope and ask them if they see what we see. Since they are on the other side of the world, they will (probably) be able to see the star when we can't. This is the first thing we would do, because we would hate to be wrong about something like this, or worse, be hoaxed. (Incidentally, hoaxing us is not possible unless you're willing to spend a hundred million dollars on a satellite.) If our friends in Australia can see the signal, then the next step will probably be the New York Times. Not because we would contact them, but they would contact us. By the time the scientists at SETI and Parkes know about this, it would be impossible to keep it a secret. So if you asked me, "have you seen anything?" I would tell you that the quickest way to find out is to check the New York Times. Cheers