Welcome to Salar Grande
-
This is where me and my team spent the last 4 days collecting samples of extremophiles that live inside salt nodules in some of the driest conditions on Earth...
Read More -
Astronomers Pumped by ‘Heartbeat Stars’
They’re called “heartbeat stars”, but not because they expand and contract. In fact, they’re double star systems in which one star has a highly elongated orbit similar to that of a comet.
Read More
-
Triggering Big Bursts of Star Formation in Blue Compact Dwarf Galaxies
Trisha Ashley's SETI Talk on Tuesday October 11, 2016. Dwarf galaxies tend to form stars inefficiently. Yet, blue compact dwarf (BCD) galaxies are a subset of dwarf galaxies that have intense and concentrated star formation (compared to typical dwarf galaxies). BCDs are thought to require a large disturbance to trigger their burst of star formation.
Read More
-
Big Picture Science Radio Show: Moral's Law
“If it bleeds, it leads” they say in the news biz. Indeed, headlines are often no more than a long list of moral atrocities. Yet one man argues that we’re living in the most civilized era in history, thanks to science. But a psychologist says it’s really emotion that drives us to be good. Will better moral behavior become academic when ethical decisions are made by thinking machines?
Read More
-
Follow Dr. Nathalie Cabrol as she explores extraordinary landscapes and planetary analogs in Chile.
Read More
-
Eliot Gillum's SETI Talk on Tuesday October 04, 2016. The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence is a blind search across many dimensions—space and time being the most obvious. Every good SETI researcher does their very best to make the minimal reasonable assumptions, but time and resources are always limited, so various strategic optimizations have been adopted.
Read More
-
They May Be Small, but They’re Hot
The first planet found around a normal star other than the Sun was 51 Peg b, which was soon dubbed a “hot Jupiter.”
Read More
-
Aiming High! The Search for Biosignatures on Mars Starts High on Earth
Nathalie Cabrol and her astrobiology team are headed to the Chilean Andes to investigate Mars-on-Earth
Read More
-
Methane on Mars: potential origin and seepage
Giuseppe Etiope's SETI Talk on Tuesday Sept 27, 2016. It is widely accepted that the occurrence of methane (CH4) in the Martian atmosphere may imply the presence of active geological sources, i.e. gas emission structures in the Martian soil and subsoil. In other words, gas seepage, a process well known on Earth, should exist on Mars.
Read More
-
It’s now the biggest single-dish radio telescope on Earth. Settled down in the bumpy karst of China’s Guizhou province, about 1200 miles southwest of Beijing, this newest instrument for studying the heavens is very similar in design to the famed Arecibo dish, renown both for its science accomplishments and its performance in two popular films, “Contact” and “Goldeneye.”
Read More
News and Announcements
 |
New Horizons: Possible Clouds on Pluto, Next Target is Reddish The next target for NASA’s New Horizons mission -- which made a historic flight past Pluto in July 2015 -- apparently bears a colorful resemblance to its famous, main destination. |
|
 |
SETI Institute Scientists Head to the 48th Annual DPS Meeting The following is a list of posters and presentations by SETI Institute scientists attending the DPS meeting in Pasadena, CA, October 16-21, 2016. |
|
 |
Free "Gravitational Waves from Merging Black Holes" Talk on Wednesday, Nov 2, 2016. On Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016 at 7 pm, Dr. Lynn Cominsky of Sonoma State University will give a free, illustrated, non-technical talk on: “Spacetime Symphony: Gravitational Waves from Merging Black Holes” in the Smithwick Theater at Foothill College, in Los Altos. The talk is part of the Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series, now in its 17th year. |
|
 |
October 5 - outburst of October Camelopardalids The dust trail of an unknown long-period comet wandered in Earth's path on October 5. |
|
 |
SETI Institute is Hiring - Astrobiology and Planetary Science Research Assistant SETI Institute is seeking a motivated, proactive, and dedicated research Assistant experienced in molecular biology. |
|
|
|
SETI Institute is Hiring - Systems Administrator The SETI Institute is currently looking for a full time Linux Systems Administrator to support our global research at our Mountain View Headquarters. |
|
 |
Why Stephen Hawking is light years from the truth about ‘dangerous aliens’ The physicist Stephen Hawking is convinced that intelligent extraterrestrials populate space, a view shared by many scientists. But his ruminations on this prospect have shifted from the aliens’ existence to their deportment. Maybe they’re dangerous. |
|
 |
ISO International Space Orchestra - 17500 people were there! Blending space science, planet-poking and bluegrass-playing spacecraft operators, the world’s first orchestra composed of space scientists – the International Space Orchestra (ISO) - is coming together to perform as the supporting act to Sigur Rós at the Hollywood Bowl |
|
 |
Meteor passes near to Allen Telescope Array SETI Institute astronomer Peter Jenniskens notes that a very bright meteor, a so-called fireball, was seen in the vicinity of the Allen Telescope Array on Thursday, September 15 at about 7:48 pm local time. |
|
 |
The International Space Orchestra perform with Sigur Rós at the Hollywood Bowl on Sept. 24th The International Space Orchestra will perform with Sigur Rós at the Hollywood Bowl on Sept. 24th. To celebrate the event the SETI Institute, Icelandic band Sigur Rós and Nelly Ben Hayoun Studios are running a competition to win one of 25 signed patches. |
Pages
Support Big Picture Science
Help us meet our $30,000 Challenge.
Your support for Big Picture Science during our $30,000 October Challenge will allow us to deepen and enrich our coverage of science and technology as we continue our quest to bring you the latest developments in science and technology.
Don’t Miss the Total Solar Eclipse of 2017
Next August, and for the first time in 37 years, the moon’s shadow will cross the contiguous U.S., and do so from ocean to ocean. If you’ve never before seen a total solar eclipse, you won’t want to miss this rare chance to become more interesting at parties and family reunions when you relate your experiences and describe the incredible views.
But fair warning: Lodging along the eclipse path is already filling up. Fortunately, you can bypass that problem and all other logistical nightmares. Just sign up for one of MWT’s exquisite eclipse tours – this one on a boat cruising down the Columbia River. You’ll be following in the wake of Lewis and Clark, without the discomforts of same. The tour lecturer will be SETI Institute astronomer Seth Shostak.
Check out this remarkable trip here. There are only a few cabins left.
Join SETI Institute
Sign up here to get updates from the SETI Institute. We’ll also send you these cool high-resolution posters that depict the six research areas of the SETI Institute. From Astrobiology to the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence, our quest belongs to the world and we’d love to share the journey with you.
