We get it — it sounds almost too good to be true
Sending a message to space as a real radio signal? It’s the kind of thing that makes people ask: “Is this actually real?” Yes. This page exists so you can see the full pipeline: what we do with your words from the moment you place your order to the moment your signal leaves our antenna and travels into space at the speed of light. No hand-waving, no black box — just the real process.
Step 1: You write your message and place your order
When you compose your message on Cosmic Echo, you choose your text (up to 100 words), your destination star, and your certificate type. The moment you submit, two things happen before you even pay: we generate a unique signal ID for your message, and we encode your text into binary — the same 0s and 1s that every digital signal is made of. Your message is then stored in our system and assigned to the next available transmission batch. When you complete payment (via Stripe), your order is linked to that message and marked as completed. You receive an order confirmation email and, if you chose a certificate, access to your Signal Tracker and certificate. Your message is now in our queue.
Step 2: Your message is already binary — and stored on our servers
We don’t wait until “launch” to turn your words into a signal. As soon as you submit your message, we normalize the text (uppercase, standard characters), then convert every character into 8-bit binary. For example, the letter “A” becomes
01000001. That binary payload is stored in our database with your message and is the exact sequence we will broadcast. Nothing is simulated or faked at this stage — it’s the same encoding used in radio and space communications everywhere.Step 3: Your message moves to our dispatch queue
Every message is assigned to a transmission batch. Batches are scheduled in advance; typically your message is scheduled to go out about 6 hours after your order. Our dispatch system knows exactly which messages belong to which batch, their destination coordinates, and their binary payloads. When the batch’s launch time arrives, our team at Station 1 (in the Northern Hemisphere) prepares the antenna: the parabolic dish is aimed at the correct celestial coordinates for each destination, and the transmission system is loaded with the batch’s payloads. Your message is part of that payload — it’s in the queue, on our server, ready to be sent.
Step 4: At launch — we send your signal through our dish toward space
At the scheduled time, the antenna at Station 1 broadcasts your message. Your binary payload is transmitted as a radio signal at 1420 MHz — the hydrogen line, the same frequency used in radio astronomy and considered the most universal for interstellar communication. The dish aims at the star you chose (Alpha Centauri, Vega, Polaris, Sagittarius A*, or deep space). The signal leaves Earth at the speed of light: 299,792 kilometers per second. Within about 1.3 seconds it has passed the Moon; within minutes it has passed the Sun. It does not stop. There is no simulation here — this is a real electromagnetic broadcast into space, the same physics NASA uses to talk to Voyager and every deep-space probe.
Step 5: You get proof — email, certificate, and live tracking
As soon as your transmission has left Earth, we mark the batch as transmitted and you receive an email: “Your transmission has left Earth.” Your Signal Tracker activates with a live distance counter — how far your message has traveled from Earth, updated in real time. Your Transmission Certificate (digital or printed) includes the exact message text, destination, date, station, frequency, and a cryptographic hash so the transmission is verifiable. You’re not asked to “trust us” — you get a permanent, tamper-proof record and a tracker that keeps updating forever.
Why we’re confident saying it’s real
The technology is not experimental. Radio waves at 1420 MHz have been used for decades in astronomy and deep-space communication. The only difference from a NASA downlink is the destination: we’re aiming at the stars, not at a spacecraft. Your message becomes a real radio signal, leaving our antenna and propagating through the vacuum of space at the speed of light. We don’t simulate that — we do it. If you have more questions, check our How it works section or the Send a message to space page for the science and FAQs.
Example
What your Transmission Certificate looks like
Every message gets a verified certificate with your signal ID, message text, destination, station, and a cryptographic hash. Here’s a sample (same HTML as the real certificate, with destination background):
~6 hours
Time to transmission
1420 MHz
Hydrogen line frequency
299,792 km/s
Signal speed
$19
Founders price until Jun 1
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know
Your words deserve to travel forever
Founders price $19 for everyone until June 1, 2026. Your message transmits within hours.
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