Image: Netflix
Project STRACT, short for Special Telemetry Research and Tracking, was the name given to the ambitious enterprise. Consisting of dual-channel oscillators, cathode-ray tubes, a bunch of large screens, and a low frequency transmitter, John set up shop in and around his grandparent's property. In the yard, he erected a couple of metal towers holding transmitters and receivers. The command centre to monitor incoming and outgoing signals, was strategically located in the living room, where often - in the company of his granny Irene - John would seat for hours listening and staring at a screen for any signs of offworld intelligence.
John, the subject of a Netflix documentary called John Was Trying to Contact Aliens, now lives a quiet life with his life partner in a small town. He ceased all alien-contacting activities back in 1998 due to economic reasons. The remains of what used to be a driven and potential paradigm-shifting endeavor, now seat dismantled in storage as a silent witness of humanity's hunger for confirmation that we are not alone.