Episode 2: Exploring the Cosmos: The Search for Extraterrestrial Life
In this episode of Useful Knowledge, Patrick Spero speaks with pioneering astronomer Jill Tarter (APS 2024) about her lifelong search for life beyond Earth. Tarter, a founding figure of modern SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence), reflects on the scientific, technological, and philosophical dimensions of asking whether we are alone in the universe.
She discusses how advances in radio astronomy and AI are reshaping the hunt for extraterrestrial technology, the origins and goals of the Allen Telescope Array, and why future discoveries will require trusted, global scientific institutions. Tarter also shares personal stories—from early inspiration on Florida beaches to challenges as a woman in engineering—and revisits memorable moments from SETI’s early years.
Jill Tarter is the emerita Bernard M. Oliver Chair for SETI at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, and currently serves on its Board of Trustees. Tarter received Bachelor of Engineering Physics from Cornell University and her Ph.D. in Astronomy from the University of California, Berkeley. She has led numerous SETI observational programs at radio observatories worldwide and helped construct and operate the innovative Allen Telescope Array in Northern CA. Tarter’s work has brought her wide recognition in the scientific community, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from Women in Aerospace and two Public Service Medals from NASA. She is an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California, and a Fellow of the AAAS and the California Academy of Sciences, on whose Board of Trustees she serves. In 2004 Time Magazine named her one of the Time 100 most influential people in the world and in 2012 one of the Time 25 most influential people in space. Tarter was a Technology, Education, Design (TED) prize-winner in 2009, and was a recipient of the Silicon Valley Women of Influence 2010 Award. In 2014 she was chosen as the Jansky Lecturer and in 2024 she was elected to the American Philosophical Society. Asteroid 74824 Tarter (1999 TJ16) has been named in her honor.