This is Austin's first encounter with intelligent extraterrestrial life. He would encounter more in the Bigfoot episodes from Seasons 3 and 4 as well as the Season 5 episode "The Lost Island".
The external shots of the space center Steve is working from is actually views of NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. There are also some stock footage shots of the mission control center. The scenes with the actors inside a control room are studio shots.