Follow Monte Ross of the Laser Space Signal Observatory as he explores the challenges in searching for evidence of extraterrestrials, the programs that have failed, and those that continue. The book circumvents the failure of searches at radio frequencies by being the first to explore electromagnetic frequencies besides RF and microwave as possible signal sources, taking into consideration all the ways that extraterrestrials might try to communicate with us. Throughout the presentation, all the ideas, concepts, and approaches are explained clearly, without the use of complex math or physics.

The likelihood of extraterrestrial intelligence.- Vast distances and long travel times.- Stars, their evolution and types.- Planets and our Sun.- The many constraints on life.- Why would anyone transmit to us?.- The Drake Equation and habitable planets.- The basics of space communication.- Where to look in the electromagnetic spectrum?.- Receiver basics and how big is big?.- Noise and limitations on sensitivity.- Programs in SETI.- A brief history of SETI.- Radio-frequency and microwave SETI, including the Allen Telescope Array.- Early optical SETI and the all-sky Harvard system.- Possibilities in SETI.- The PhotonStar project.- Key issues for SETI.- Other parts of the spectrum, decoding the data and forming pictures.- Future systems for intercepting alien lasers.