Scientists exploring space in search of extraterrestrial civilizations cannot obtain the necessary computer equipment due to the hype around cryptocurrency mining, radio astronomers report.
As part of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) projects, two new observatories are planned to be opened. However, the main computer chips are hard to come by.
“We want to buy the latest GPUs and can't find them. And their prices have doubled due to the massive mining of cryptocurrencies, particularly Ethereum,” says Dan Werthimer, founder of the SETI@home project.
Some Seti telescopes have about 100 GPUs that process information from large space antennas. These antennas can pick up even the weakest high-frequency signals in our solar system. Seti is currently trying to optimize its ability to analyze such data at two observatories - Green Bank in West Virginia and Parkes in Australia.
Video game developers have also been hit by shortages and rising prices for GPUs.
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