COLD OPEN+ · SPACE
COLD OPEN+ · Nº 23 of 40
The Mixtape Leaving the Solar System
Two spacecraft carry a golden record of Earth's sounds and music, meant for whoever might find them in a billion years.
Wikimedia Commons · NASA/JPL · Public domain
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THE VOYAGERS
Two probes, one message
NASA launched Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 in 1977 to tour the outer planets. But they'd keep going forever afterward — so scientists bolted a message to each one, in case anything ever found them.
Wikimedia Commons · NASA/JPL · Public domain
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THE OBJECT
A record made of gold
Each probe carries a gold-plated copper phonograph record, chosen to survive for eons in space. Etched on the cover are instructions — a diagram showing how to play it, for a finder who has never seen Earth.
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WHAT'S ON IT
A portrait of a planet
A committee led by astronomer Carl Sagan chose the contents.
MUSIC
From Bach and Beethoven to Chuck Berry
VOICES
Greetings in 55 languages
SOUNDS
Wind, thunder, whales, a human heartbeat
IMAGES
115 encoded photos of life and Earth
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THE TIMESCALE
BILLIONS
OF YEARS THE RECORD COULD SURVIVE
Built to outlive everything
Space is nearly empty and gentle. The records could remain readable for hundreds of millions — even billions — of years, likely outlasting Earth's cities, our species, and possibly the planet itself.
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THE ODDS
It will almost certainly never be found
Space is unimaginably vast and mostly empty. The chance anything ever intercepts a Voyager is vanishingly small. The record wasn't really built to be found — it was built to say we were here.
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THE BIG IDEA
Humanity put its best self in a bottle and threw it into the cosmic ocean.
No expectation of a reply. Just a message: this is who we were, this is what we loved, and we wanted someone to know.
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THE RECEIPTS · THIS REALLY HAPPENED
Look it up yourself
Both probes are still transmitting today.
NAME
The Voyager Golden Record
LAUNCHED
Voyager 1 & 2, 1977
LED BY
Astronomer Carl Sagan
CONTENTS
Music, 55 languages, sounds, 115 images
MATERIAL
Gold-plated copper phonograph record
STATUS
Both spacecraft now in interstellar space
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DISCUSS
What do you think?
If you made the record today, what one song would you add?
Why send a message you'll almost certainly never get a reply to?
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