Re: Re: GPS + Pulsars + an apology/rebuttal

----- Original Message -----
From: <laserlight@quixnet.net>
To: <gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu>
Sent: Monday, February 25, 2002 5:33 PM
Subject: RE: Re: GPS + Pulsars + an apology/rebuttal

> Roger Books
> > > Who is going to put in beacons that will only be good
> > > after the signal gets across some large number of
> > > (light) years?
>
> Katy:
> > Erm. Us?
> >
> > We have sent out messages that are unlikely to be read inside the
next
> > 50,000  years. Sometimes people can be long-term about things...
>
> Roger:
> >That was a short term relatively inexpensive publicity stunt.  The
> costs to put out something that will have enough power to be a
> "space GPS" in normal space requires a huge investment that will
> come into affect after the builders and politicians have retired.

Maybe Katy was not referring to those various satellites ?

Radio waves, especially TV emissions are powerful and distinctive enough
to
be detected and filtered out of background noise from light years away.

Carl Sagan made interesting use of it in his novel "Contact" (it's also
featured in the film)

Greetings