Once they were able, people from all over the world opened their wallets. SETIStars even earned the support of a few high-profile contributors, including actress Jodie Foster, Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders, and others profiled in the gallery embedded above. With money in hand, SETI plans to restart its search sometime next month.

The funds raised by the SETIStars program should keep the array alive through the end of the year. At that point, the SETI Institute is hoping that it will have secured additional funding from the United States Air Force. While the Air Force isn't throwing public support behind the search for extraterrestrial life -- a strangely political cause, especially during tough economic times, when many feel spending money to find aliens should be more wisely spent -- it could use SETI's help in tracking space debris that has the ability to damage satellites. It takes about $2.5 million to cover the array's annual staffing and operating costs.

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