Message to the Stars
November 16, 1974 - It was on this day that scientists at the Arecibo Radio Telescope in Puerto Rico, aimed their radio waves at a cluster of stars 25,000 light years away and broadcast a message with information about human achievement.
The message was developed by astronomers Frank Drake and Carl Sagan. The 3-minute radio signal could feasibly be translated into a binary image that provides:
The numbers from one to ten
Atomic numbers for major elements
A double helix for the structure of DNA
A human figure
A primitive layout of our solar system, identifying earth’s position as the third planet from the sun
A graphic of the Arecibo Radio Telescope
