Build Your Own SETI Telescope

[JamesBrown]

Is anyone interested in building their own SETI station?

I don’t mean 'SETI at Home' I mean the equivalent of an amateur radio station to do a serious, intense and independent SETI search with your own equipment.

I know how to do it. I have the only one person station on line right now and I am willing to work with one or two people to get more stations running.

www.SETI.Net

[Pinemarten]

Welcome to the board (III).

What is a 'ball park' figure for cost?
Can I fit one on my balcony? ;)
Our local (Edmonton) planetarium may be interested, at least one BAUT member works there.
Our government has lots of leftover money that it is looking to spend somewhere.

[JamesBrown]

What is a 'ball park' figure for cost?
Well lets see:
Receiver - $600 to $2000 (ICOM R7000 and up)
Antenna - $300 if you can find one of the old 'L' band antennas that someone wants to get rid of. Put a pipe in the ground and point it up.
Horn - $100
LNA - $200
Software - $100 (from me)

so I guess about $1,500 minimum would get you started. I imagine I have about $3,000 in mine.
Can I fit one on my balcony? ;)
You actually could. Mine is on my balcony. Its a 12' dish and a rotor

Our local (Edmonton) planetarium may be interested, at least one BAUT member works there.
Our government has lots of leftover money that it is looking to spend somewhere.You Canadians are *so lucky* to have all that money.

The software is the hard part but I have that written and it works well (you can see it running on my site). I would tailor the software for your exact hardware setup for no additional charge (within reason of course).

I want to do this because so far there is no one to share hits with. I'm lonely...

[Pinemarten]

I see the filter edited the female word in my PM. I should see why.

My brother has a satellite business. I should see if his yard still has 3-10 old Andrews dishes in it. He may have LNAs and receivers kicking around. He could probably market some to his many rich clients. Is there a tax-dodge in it? That would sell.
I will think about it and email 'people with money'. I could start a business maybe. Is there a tax-dodge(II)?

Would we be scanning the things as the bigger projects? Can we coordinate with them?

If I sell a few, do I get a cut? Or do I have to pirate your software and keep it all myself?
Actually if all the systems are 'linked', you could have a verification code in there.

[JamesBrown]

My brother has a satellite business. I should see if his yard still has 3-10 old Andrews dishes in it. He may have LNAs and receivers kicking around. He could probably market some to his many rich clients. I would bet that he has or knows of the type of antennas I'm talking about. The LNAs that come with the old TV dishes are not suitable but you can buy one that is for not much money.Would we be scanning the things as the bigger projects? Can we coordinate with them?
Good idea but the big project (there is only one other station running other than mine and that's SETI @ Home) won't talk to you. Your not important enough.If I sell a few, do I get a cut? Or do I have to pirate your software and keep it all myself? Actually if all the systems are 'linked', you could have a verification code in there.
Cut? - You can have it all.
The software took me about 5 years to write and its only good for SETI. I would gladly give it away to someone that can help get more stations on line.
Think about it...

{My Station alarm is going off right now so I have to go see what I have caught}

[Utwo]

If I sell a few, do I get a cut? Or do I have to pirate your software and keep it all myself?

...

[Pinemarten]

...

If a sense of humour doesn't get you in trouble it is not a sense of humour. - Pinemarten

I don't include the ;) after some of my posts, just to irritate more people.

[Utwo]

Rofl!

[Pinemarten]

Would it be possible to put a scope tracking motor on it, and thus leave it directed at one arc for long periods of time?
I don't think Arecibo does that.
Would the center of the galaxy be a good/bad/noisy choice?

[Pinemarten]

I started a thread in the SETI forum on this subject.
One member seems to think that little, if any searching has been done in the Southern hemisphere.

If any of our right-side-up members are interested, I am considering finding public funding to install a sys down under. It could be funded from here and shipped down there.

[Pinemarten]

Found 2 links posted in my SETI thread.

A league of their own:
http://www.setileague.org/

A company that makes systems. They have a list and map of users:
http://www.cassicorp.com/