The Voyagers' Message in a Bottle

s1m0n · Post by **s1m0n** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 12:37 am

A 12-inch gold plated copper disk (a phonograph record) containing recorded sounds and images representing human cultures and life on Earth, is affixed to each Voyager - a message in a bottle cast into the cosmic sea. The recorded material was selected by a committee chaired by astronomer Carl Sagan. Simple diagrams on the cover symbolically represent the spacecraft's origin and give instructions for playing the disk. The exotic construction of the disks should provide them with a long lifetime as they coast through interstellar space.

I wonder if they ever made and sold replica copies?

brewerpaul · Post by **brewerpaul** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 4:44 am

From Wikipedia:

In the Saturday Night Live broadcast of April 22, 1978, Steve Martin appeared as a psychic in a mock news show entitled "Next Week in Review." His psychic character revealed that next week, Earth will receive the first official message from extraterrestrials (responding to the Voyager Golden Records). The message: "Send more Chuck Berry."

emmline · Post by **emmline** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 5:43 am

Ok, so I'm looking at the diagrams there, trying to think whether if I were the alien, knowing nothing about phonograph recordings, I would be able to make any sense of that.

I imagine they have sound engineer aliens though, who are smarter than I.

Post by **Dale** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 6:37 am

Where's the naked couple? Wasn't there a naked couple?

WyoBadger · Post by **WyoBadger** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 7:04 am

Dale wrote:Where's the naked couple? Wasn't there a naked couple?

I heard it has one of these, too.

Anstapa · Post by **Anstapa** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:01 am

Can someone call Dr. Daniel Jackson of SG-1, and have him decipher this for us please.

Anstapa

Caroluna · Post by **Caroluna** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:47 am

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque

The Pioneer plaques are a pair of gold anodised aluminium plaques which were placed on board the Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11 spacecraft, featuring a pictorial message from humanity, in case either Pioneer 10 or 11 are intercepted by extraterrestrial beings. The plaques show the nude figures of a human male and female along with several symbols that are designed to provide information about the origin of the spacecraft.

The Pioneer spacecraft were the first human-built objects to leave the solar system. The plaque is attached to the antenna support struts in a position that shields it from erosion by stellar dust.

The Voyager Golden Record, a much more complex and detailed message using (then) state-of-the-art media, was attached to the Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977.

Caroluna · Post by **Caroluna** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:51 am

Wiki wrote:The Voyager Golden Record, a much more complex and detailed message using (then) state-of-the-art media, was attached to the Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977.

If you ask me, sending a picture of yourself naked is a much more complex message than sending instructions on how to play the LP.

emmline · Post by **emmline** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 7:15 pm

Dale wrote:Where's the naked couple? Wasn't there a naked couple?

I think they're on the other side...but I must confess to having had the same thought.

djm · Post by **djm** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:05 pm

The magic runes are writ in gold
To bring the balance back .....

- Led Zeppelin

djm

Walden · Post by **Walden** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:49 pm

brewerpaul wrote:In the Saturday Night Live broadcast of April 22, 1978, Steve Martin appeared as a psychic in a mock news show entitled "Next Week in Review."

Dude! You remember the exact date?

fearfaoin · Post by **fearfaoin** » Sun Sep 09, 2007 7:22 am

emmline wrote:I think they're on the other side...but I must confess to having had the same thought.

Two different missions, folks. See Caroluna's post.
Pioneer had the naked couple, not Voyager.

TheSpoonMan · Post by **TheSpoonMan** » Sun Sep 09, 2007 7:57 am

fearfaoin wrote:
emmline wrote:I think they're on the other side...but I must confess to having had the same thought.
Two different missions, folks. See Caroluna's post.
Pioneer had the naked couple, not Voyager.

Two?!

WHAT IF THEY FIND THEM BOTH?!

mutepointe · Post by **mutepointe** » Sun Sep 09, 2007 8:24 am

hey denny:

you've done more to make the exploration of space more interesting to me than any teacher who ever tried. do you think anyone is actually going to receive our packages?