So recently I was contacted by the SETI team regarding a sequel to the infographic I had produced a couple months back. As many of you may know already, they’re trying a new way of keeping the Allen Telescope Array running: crowdsourcing. There’s a new website over at SETIstars.org where anyone can go and give funds specifically for the restarting of the ATA. It’s a savvy move in the age of kickstarter, microloans, and grassroots funding. And it’s pretty awesome to think that, well, if the people who should be paying for this won’t pay for it, fine, we’ll do it ourselves!
I hope the venture is a big success. It’d be reaffirming to see the citizenship of planet Earth as forward-thinking enough to collectively grok the profound implications that discovery of other intelligences would have. It would be invigorating to know that we realize this meaningfully enough that we, as single individuals, would band together to sustain this important work.
In the large scope of things, it’s not all that expensive either. Just for perspective: the 1st infographic so far has seen over 40,000 views (just the flickr version, nevermind the ones I cannot track). See the bottom of this new infographic to see how much 40,000 people would need to spend apiece to keep the ATA in action…
There is a slightly-higher quality version available at flickr, as well as a whopping 11,749 pixels-long monstrosity of this new graphic combined with the original. Anyone is welcome to use or repost this to their heart’s content. All I request is a link. And that you can chip in at least a fiver to SETIstars! Anyone can swing that.
Also, I got a lot more creative with the background this time around. Check out the remnants of Kepler’s supernova, comet NEAT, and the Andromeda galaxy!
Special thanks to Phil Plait, Jill Tarter, & John Girard.
Lastly, if you’re really into this sort of thing check out some other space-musings on the site
Kepler Space Telescope Exoplanets visualized (great video comparing sizes and orbits) – video
“oh, by the way” (a reminder of just how large the universe really is)
Putting Things In Perspective: NEAT!
When I’m Feeling Down, These Are Some Things That Bring Me Back Up (a roundup of inspiring projects)
the microcosmologist frontpage
Tags: analog life, art, cosmology, earth, general nerdery, little mind-blowing things, Microcosmologist Official Recommendations, musings, my soapbox, our incredible universe, philosophy, Sagan Appreciation, technology, transitions between epochs, yesss
“So recently I was contacted by the SETI team…”
WHAAAAAAT?!!
You’re such a rock star, John.
pshaw. I’m only the freelance propaganda arm of the hour for the true rockstars! Still, it IS admittedly really cool to be chit chatting with those people. :D Getting emails from them makes me excited (file these thoughts under “you know you’re a geek if….”)