Sending information records to extraterrestrial beings… Details
The Voyager spacecraft carried “Golden Records” into outer space, offering a glimpse into humanity’s deeper desires, in the hope that other beings might come across them.
The Golden Records were placed in a bottle and sent to any intelligent beings that might encounter them in outer space. These records contain sounds and images summarizing aspects of life on Earth. They serve as a time capsule with natural sounds of Earth’s weather and wildlife, spoken messages by humans in 55 different languages, and a diverse collection of images, including the structure of DNA.
The Voyager mission has now left the solar system, venturing into space between the stars. However, this doesn’t mean the effort was in vain. In fact, some people are already contemplating what we could include in the next message in a bottle (MIAB) that we send into the vast cosmos.
In a research article published in the AGU Earth and Space Science journal, a team of researchers explored what MIAB should look like. They wrote, “These records do not just provide a brief overview of Earth and human civilization but also represent our desire to establish contact with advanced extraterrestrial civilizations.”
They added, “Our goal is to share our collective knowledge, emotions, innovations, and aspirations in a way that provides a global understanding, but relevant to the context, for human society, the evolution of life on Earth, and our hopes and concerns about the future.”
The article outlines some logical reasons for sending more MIAB vehicles into space and the kinds of fates that await them, including drifting forever through empty space.
The researchers then turned to the central question: What should we put in the time capsule? They wrote that some of the content of the original record was thoughtfully designed so that it could be adjusted and reused if updated to reflect current technology and times. However, some content and messages have flaws and difficulties that need correction.
The team suggests a two-part message: a scroll containing simple images illustrating basic information about humanity and Earth, and a small computer that can contain vast amounts of digital information.
For the advanced recipient, one key thing is to inform them of our location in this vast galaxy and universe. This can be done through a picture of some of the brightest objects in the galaxy and our location relative to them.
Given the ever-changing nature of the universe, our explanation of where we come from depends on the recipient’s knowledge of the launch date.
This research paper is the first in a series discussing what should happen in the new Golden Records. The researchers believe that we should show any recipient the long history of life on Earth. For example, we should show some of the gloom, such as our terrible wars, but we should also show our triumphs.
They wrote, “This includes our scientific achievements, such as splitting the atom and exploring space, alongside examples from a wide range of cultures and knowledge that make up the complex human fabric.”
