For radio signals we are using the world's largest radio telescope in Arecibo , Puerto Rico. You may have seen it in the movie Contact or Golden Eye . It holds 10 billion bowls of corn flakes, although we haven't actually filled it up with corn flakes to do that experiment. We collect data 24 hours a day at that radio telescope. We figured out a way to use the telescope at the same time that other astronomers are using it.
Most people are lucky if they can get that telescope a day or two a year.
To use it you have to compete with thousands of astronomers. The disadvantage is we don't get to point the telescope. But that's O.K. because we don't know where to look anyway. It's almost as good as having the telescope to ourselves. Dan Wertheimer, with a package of data from the Arecibo Observatory.