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Peter Backus

Quicktime interview with Peter:

	The New Search System(NSS)
	Becoming a scientist
	Sun Microsystems and the NSS

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"I remember reading about Frank Drake and Project Ozma when I was in third grade and thought it was pretty cool," says Dr. Peter Backus, whose long history with SETI and the Institute reaches back many years. Fascination with SETI enhanced an avid interest in astronomy, sparked by evenings spent under East Coast night skies with his father, who pointed out constellations. “I must have been very young then,” says Backus, “because Dad was very tall.”

Growing up, Backus supplemented classroom science classes that he found lacked challenge with outside reading. Backus recalls reading everything he could in the science section of his local library, starting with the “top left corner shelf where the astronomy books started” and working his way through the rest of the shelves. Astronomy continued to fascinate him most and in his junior year at Rensselaer Polytechnic University Institute in New York, Backus knew his career path would lead to the cosmos.

pulsar depiction
X-Ray Pulsar
A pulsar is a neutron star which spins on its axis.
image credit W. Feimer (Allied Signal), GSFC, NASA

In 1981, Backus received his Ph.D. in Astronomy from the University of Massachusetts where his graduate research focused on pulsars. Four years later, Backus accepted an invitation from Jill Tarter to join the SETI Institute when the organization was less than one year old. Today, as SETI Institute Observing Programs Manager, Backus oversees Project Phoenix observing sessions (look for Backus in the Phoenix control room when SETIcam goes live this November) and advises on software development for the new back-end signal processing system the Institute will launch this year in Arecibo.

The combination of bold, visionary spirit and pioneering enterprise that has allowed the Institute to grow into the flagship SETI research organization of today drove Backus to establish the SETI Institute website in 1994. Backus notes with pride, “we were one of the first 1,200 organizations to build and register a website.” The site, www.seti.org has grown from a few dozen text pages in its infancy to an encyclopedic volume comprising hundreds of pages with dynamic content. This remarkable evolution reflects the growth in size and complexity of the Institute itself over the last decade.

A gifted educator with a historian’s sense of archival value, Backus introduced Project Phoenix and SETI to a young and growing community of computer users. These “surfers” rely upon the Internet as a primary tool for all manner of research; academic, business, and personal. The early work still forms the backbone of the Institute’s online presence, with which Backus remains actively engaged as a savvy commentator and valued contributor.

“I've always enjoyed teaching,” says Backus, who over the years has taught university level astronomy courses, special courses at museums, and given planetarium shows. “Astronomy is a science that anyone can enjoy from their own backyard,” he continues, adding that he seeks to “give students an understanding of the process of discovery so that they will enjoy reading about astronomy long after the final exam.” Always the teacher, Backus has frequent opportunities to educate the public during SETI speaking engagements, and often advises young people interested in pursuing a SETI science career.

Arecibo Observatory, Puerto Rico.
image credit Seth Shostak

During this year’s fall observing session of Project Phoenix at Arecibo, Puerto Rico, Backus will oversee deployment of the innovative and powerful new signal processing. The New Search System (NSS) will replace equipment developed during NASA’s SETI program over one decade ago. The initial iteration of the modular NSS will comprise a smaller number of units than the finished system, yet will boast performance equal to the old NASA equipment. The NSS will continue to bring enhanced capabilities to Project Phoenix in the future. Backus eagerly anticipates the eventual completion of Allen Telescope Array (targeted for 2005) when the powerful and robust technology of the NSS will power SETI research 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

The California location and the highly automated nature of the Institute’s new telescope will allow Institute scientists to focus on work closer to home when Project Phoenix concludes and the Allen Telescope comes online. Backus and his SETI science colleagues at the Institute will find their travel schedules less demanding, freeing their time for more research and, in Backus’ case, for teaching.

Says Backus to any student who is interested in a SETI career, “Read everything you can, ask questions, and be persistent.”

At a Glance

Since 1985 he has worked for the SETI Institute, first under the NASA SETI Program and now for Project Phoenix.
Peter manages the Project Phoenix observing program and does software development for the new search system.
He did his graduate and post-doctoral research on pulsars.

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