Voyager 1, launched from earth in 1977 and powered by plutonium, has now left the solar system. Or as NASA puts it, “Voyager goes interstellar.” NASA believes that the spacecraft escaped the solar system and the sun’s gravitational pull more than a year ago, actually, but only now does it have the evidence to confirm that belief. The probe began its travels studying our neighbors and now it will continue radioing back information to earth about its new discoveries. If you want the full explanation, check out the video below.
I remember the hoopla when Voyager 1 began its journey. Carl Sagan appeared on TV shows talking about the probe and a golden record on board. A committee chaired by Sagan created a record disc to go with the ship. The record included images, diagrams, voices, and music for the event that alien beings might one day discover this distant traveler far way from its home. I owned and read Sagan’s book about the record, Murmurs of Earth, although long ago I lost track of what happened to the book.
The contents of the record caused some debate. The committee believed it was important to illustrate human reproduction for any aliens, but NASA objected to using nude photos. So, instead, the record featured human silhouettes illustrating a fetus in the woman’s womb.
The other controversial aspect of the record was the inclusion of Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode.” Carl Sagan originally did not like the idea but he eventually was happy they included the song. Reportedly, folk music collector Alan Lomax objected to the inclusion of Berry’s song because rock music had not been around that long and was thus “adolescent.” Sagan responded with the defense, “There are a lot of adolescents on the planet,’”
The probe itself worked its way into popular culture as it was referenced in TV and movies. A few years after the launch, I recall recognizing Voyager when it played a key role in Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979). Although the movie actually used a fictional “Voyager 6,” this “Vger” still looked like the Voyager I remembered.
Go Voyager go.
Photo: via NASA (Public Domain). NASA Video from
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology.
What music would you put on a record for aliens? Leave your two cents in the comments.
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