( CNN ) -- Wildfires raging in Northern California briefly halted the search for extraterrestrial life on Tuesday . The Eiler Fire , burning some 200 miles north of Sacramento , forced employees at the SETI Institute 's Allen Telescope Array to evacuate and temporarily shut down all of their computers , Internet and power . `` We ca n't listen when all that is down , '' said Seth Shostak , senior astronomer and director of SETI Research . At SETI -- which stands for Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence -- scientists search the heavens for signs of extraterrestrial life by `` listening '' with an array of small satellite dishes . The blaze came within a mile of the facility , located near Hat Creek , California , on both the east and west , according to Shostak . `` The fire on the west had jumped the road , burnt down our favorite lunch place , got within a mile of the telescopes , '' he said . As the flames got closer , the staff fled to safer ground and shut down the satellites . `` We just lost some search hours , '' he said . `` To expect that E.T . will somehow reach out at this moment , that would be very bizarre . '' The Eiler Fire may not have cost the researchers their chance to find aliens , but it 's already burned more than 31,000 acres and threatened over 700 homes . However , fire offficials say the fire is 35 % contained and is expected to be fully contained by August 20th . The search for life can continue at SETI 's telescope array . The scientists were eventually given the all clear to return to the facility . Pacific Northwest wildfires char a million acres , spur warnings of bad air . Citizen scientists shape 'destiny of humanity ' with SETI . Dave Alsup contributed to this report .
Scientists at SETI Institute 's solar array had to evacuate as wildfires closed in . Blazes approached them from both the east and west . Scientists were later given the chance to return .