Monday, Feb 23, 2026

This month’s projects orbit a shared question: how do signals become meaning? Laurent Grasso’s forthcoming film follows a vehicle tuned to whispers from the sky, while our Cosmic Consciousness artists explore whether molecules from distant atmospheres can be translated into poetry and sensation. Across exhibitions, workshops, and conversations, artists in the SETI AIR program continue to treat technology, chemistry, and perception not simply as tools but as languages through which we understand contact. Each work offers a different receiver for the unknown, inviting us to consider how we listen as much as what we hope to hear.

As always, make sure to catch up on our SETI AIR news and events.

Clear skies,
Bettina

AIR Program Spotlight

Laurent Grasso: Cosmic Drive

Our Algorithmic Imaginings resident Laurent Grasso has entered the second year of his residency and has begun production on a new art film.

The work will premiere at MASS MoCA later this year and travel to ZKM in Germany in 2027. With filming scheduled for spring and summer, we look forward to following the project as it develops. Here is the synopsis of the film:

A lone driver crosses a vast, desert landscape, haunted by strange signals in the sky and spectral whispers on the radio. The car is more than a vehicle; it is a metaphysical vessel attuned to signals from other worlds. Blurring the boundaries between road movie and visionary meditation, the film transforms landscapes, machines, and living beings into receivers of cosmic forces. Through hypnotic imagery and uncanny detail, it explores the thresholds between the human and the non-human, the visible and the invisible.

Mark your calendars
Metaphysical Maze (Solo exhibition)
MASS MoCA
November 7, 2026–January 16, 2028

Current exhibition
Arjuna (Group exhibition)
Arduna Pavilion, AlUla, Saudi Arabia
February 1 - April 15, 2026

Learn More

Watch SETI AIR

SETI Live: Exoplanetary Poetry: AI, Chemistry, and Alien Communication

With daniela brill estrada, Bart Kuipers, Julie-Michèle Morin

Our Cosmic Consciousness residency artists discuss an art-science collaboration that imagines how language might emerge from alien worlds.

Hosts: Bettina Forget and Cosmic Consciousness residency advisor Gregory Betts.

Recorded Live on February 19, 2026, 11 a.m. PST

Watch on Youtube

SETI AIR Artist News & Events

Richelle Ellis

Open Studio + Reception

Richelle Ellis Studio
Los Angeles
Thursday, February 26, 2026

RSVP Here

Scott Kildall

Bio-Plastic Beats: Building Living Musical Interfaces

Workshop
February 19, 2026
San Francisco

Learn More

Daniela de Paulis

Journal article in Acta Astronautica

de Paulis, D., Mignone, C., Forget, B., Fabbri, I., De Vito, G., & Marchis, F. (2026). Global outreach and cultural impact of A Sign in Space, an interdisciplinary simulation of a First Contact scenario. Acta Astronautica, 242, 151–160.

Learn More

News

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Jul 22, 2026
The SETI Institute is now accepting submissions for the Wow! Literary Award for Emerging Writers
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Jul 10, 2026
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Jun 24, 2026
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Aug 27, 2026
SETI Institute Achievements: Q2 2026 Activity Report
During the second quarter of 2026, the SETI Institute was especially active and made strong progress in research, education, outreach, and public engagement. Our scientists published over 80 peer-reviewed papers in fields such as SETI, astrobiology, planetary science, exoplanets, and heliophysics.
#Activity Reports #Carl Sagan Center #Outreach #Education #AIR #Community #Research #SETI Institute
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#AIR #SETI AIR Newsletter #Bettina Forget #Andrea Rassell #Alicia Sometimes #Jonathon Keats #Daniela de Paulis #Laurent Grasso
Jul 22, 2026
The SETI Institute is now accepting submissions for the Wow! Literary Award for Emerging Writers
The annual Wow! Literary Award for emerging writers and poets (formerly Cosmic Chronicles Literary Prize) is a contest for emerging writers of all ages whose work explores questions of interspecies communication, intelligence and consciousness in the universe. 
#AIR #Cosmic Chronicles #Wow! Literary Award #Bettina Forget #Gregory Betts
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#AIR #SETI AIR Newsletter #Bettina Forget #Xin Liu #Jonathon Keats #Richelle Ellis #Linda O'Keefe
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Jun 24, 2026
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