1962 — The Morse message (the first)
On November 19, 1962, the Evpatoria Deep Space Center (also called RT-70, in what is now Ukraine) transmitted the first deliberate radio message aimed at another world. It was directed first at Venus, then toward several nearby stars.
The transmission was simple: three words in Morse code — MIR (peace), LENIN, and SSSR (the Soviet Union). It was as much a political gesture as a scientific one — a Cold War statement broadcast into the cosmos.
The signal has long since passed any plausible targets. If it passed a star with an inhabited world, the inhabitants — if they existed and were listening — received three words from Earth in 1962: peace, a political leader's name, and a national acronym. Not humanity's most representative introduction.
The transmission was simple: three words in Morse code — MIR (peace), LENIN, and SSSR (the Soviet Union). It was as much a political gesture as a scientific one — a Cold War statement broadcast into the cosmos.
The signal has long since passed any plausible targets. If it passed a star with an inhabited world, the inhabitants — if they existed and were listening — received three words from Earth in 1962: peace, a political leader's name, and a national acronym. Not humanity's most representative introduction.
1972–1973 — Pioneer plaques
NASA's Pioneer 10 (launched 1972) and Pioneer 11 (1973) each carried a gold-anodized aluminum plaque designed by Carl Sagan and Frank Drake, with artwork by Sagan's wife Linda Salzman Sagan. These are the first physical messages sent out of our solar system.
The plaque depicts:
• A hyperfine transition of hydrogen (a universal unit of time and length)
• A radial pattern of lines representing 14 pulsars, pointing back to our Sun's position
• A schematic of our solar system with the spacecraft's trajectory
• A nude man and woman, to scale against the spacecraft
Pioneer 10 is now heading roughly toward the star Aldebaran (about 68 light-years away), which it won't reach for about 2 million years. The plaques were the first attempt to send a visual message out of the solar system — a message in a bottle thrown into interstellar space.
The plaque depicts:
• A hyperfine transition of hydrogen (a universal unit of time and length)
• A radial pattern of lines representing 14 pulsars, pointing back to our Sun's position
• A schematic of our solar system with the spacecraft's trajectory
• A nude man and woman, to scale against the spacecraft
Pioneer 10 is now heading roughly toward the star Aldebaran (about 68 light-years away), which it won't reach for about 2 million years. The plaques were the first attempt to send a visual message out of the solar system — a message in a bottle thrown into interstellar space.
1974 — The Arecibo message
The most famous deliberate message ever sent. On November 16, 1974, the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico transmitted a 1,679-bit binary sequence toward the globular star cluster M13, approximately 25,000 light-years away. The message was composed by Frank Drake and Carl Sagan.
Why 1,679 bits? Because 1,679 = 23 × 73, two prime numbers, so the only sensible rectangular arrangement is 23 columns × 73 rows. An intelligent recipient would figure out that the binary stream is meant to be arranged into a grid.
The resulting image, when arranged correctly, encodes:
• The numbers 1 through 10
• The atomic numbers of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus (the elements of DNA)
• The formulas for the sugars and bases in the nucleotides of DNA
• The number of nucleotides in DNA and a graphic of the double helix
• A stick figure of a human being and the human population of Earth (approximately 4 billion at the time)
• A graphic of our solar system, with Earth displaced upward to indicate the origin
• A graphic of the Arecibo telescope itself
The transmission lasted about 3 minutes. The message will reach M13 in approximately 25,000 years — by which time M13 may have moved. It was, as Sagan himself acknowledged, primarily a demonstration that we could, not a serious attempt at contact.
In 2001, a crop circle near Chilton, England appeared that appeared to be a modified response to the Arecibo message. Its origin was never confirmed.
Why 1,679 bits? Because 1,679 = 23 × 73, two prime numbers, so the only sensible rectangular arrangement is 23 columns × 73 rows. An intelligent recipient would figure out that the binary stream is meant to be arranged into a grid.
The resulting image, when arranged correctly, encodes:
• The numbers 1 through 10
• The atomic numbers of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus (the elements of DNA)
• The formulas for the sugars and bases in the nucleotides of DNA
• The number of nucleotides in DNA and a graphic of the double helix
• A stick figure of a human being and the human population of Earth (approximately 4 billion at the time)
• A graphic of our solar system, with Earth displaced upward to indicate the origin
• A graphic of the Arecibo telescope itself
The transmission lasted about 3 minutes. The message will reach M13 in approximately 25,000 years — by which time M13 may have moved. It was, as Sagan himself acknowledged, primarily a demonstration that we could, not a serious attempt at contact.
In 2001, a crop circle near Chilton, England appeared that appeared to be a modified response to the Arecibo message. Its origin was never confirmed.
1977 — Voyager Golden Records
The most ambitious physical message ever sent. NASA launched Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 in 1977; each carried a 12-inch gold-plated copper phonograph record inside an aluminum cover with playback instructions etched on the surface in binary.
The records were assembled under the direction of Carl Sagan. They contain:
• 115 images (encoded in analog form)
• Greetings in 55 languages, including ancient Sumerian and Akkadian
• A message from then-UN Secretary General Kurt Waldheim
• The brainwaves of Ann Druyan (who was falling in love with Carl Sagan at the time of recording — the record includes her thoughts)
• 90 minutes of music from 27 cultures, including Bach, Beethoven, Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode," and Senegalese percussion
• Sounds of Earth: surf, rain, thunder, birds, whales, a mother's first words to her newborn child
Voyager 1 is now in interstellar space, the most distant human-made object ever. It will pass within about 1.6 light-years of the star Gliese 445 in about 40,000 years.
The Golden Records are both a message to any potential extraterrestrial finder and a portrait of humanity to ourselves. They represent the most careful, curated attempt to answer: "Who are we?"
The records were assembled under the direction of Carl Sagan. They contain:
• 115 images (encoded in analog form)
• Greetings in 55 languages, including ancient Sumerian and Akkadian
• A message from then-UN Secretary General Kurt Waldheim
• The brainwaves of Ann Druyan (who was falling in love with Carl Sagan at the time of recording — the record includes her thoughts)
• 90 minutes of music from 27 cultures, including Bach, Beethoven, Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode," and Senegalese percussion
• Sounds of Earth: surf, rain, thunder, birds, whales, a mother's first words to her newborn child
Voyager 1 is now in interstellar space, the most distant human-made object ever. It will pass within about 1.6 light-years of the star Gliese 445 in about 40,000 years.
The Golden Records are both a message to any potential extraterrestrial finder and a portrait of humanity to ourselves. They represent the most careful, curated attempt to answer: "Who are we?"
1999 and 2003 — Cosmic Call
The first two transmissions specifically designed to be decoded by an alien intelligence — not symbolic gestures or demonstrations, but actual attempts at first contact.
Cosmic Call 1 (1999) — Transmitted from Evpatoria toward four nearby Sun-like stars: 16 Cygni A & B, 15 Sge, HD 178428, and 47 UMa. The message was developed by a team including Yvan Dutil and Stéphane Dumas and encoded mathematical and scientific information designed to be solvable by a recipient with no prior knowledge of human language or number systems.
Cosmic Call 2 (2003) — A follow-up transmission to five more stars, including 55 Cnc, Hip 4872, HD 245409, GJ 777A, and 47 UMa again. It included an updated message plus "Teenage Message" content (see below).
Cosmic Call 1's signal reached its nearest target, 16 Cygni, in 2069 — a date still in the future. No reply has been received.
Cosmic Call 1 (1999) — Transmitted from Evpatoria toward four nearby Sun-like stars: 16 Cygni A & B, 15 Sge, HD 178428, and 47 UMa. The message was developed by a team including Yvan Dutil and Stéphane Dumas and encoded mathematical and scientific information designed to be solvable by a recipient with no prior knowledge of human language or number systems.
Cosmic Call 2 (2003) — A follow-up transmission to five more stars, including 55 Cnc, Hip 4872, HD 245409, GJ 777A, and 47 UMa again. It included an updated message plus "Teenage Message" content (see below).
Cosmic Call 1's signal reached its nearest target, 16 Cygni, in 2069 — a date still in the future. No reply has been received.
2001 — Teen Age Message
Organized by Alexander Zaitsev and a group of Russian teenagers, the Teen Age Message was transmitted from Evpatoria toward six Sun-like stars. It included:
• A continuous wave section (a "hello" to show the transmission is artificial)
• A coherent sounding section with musical compositions — the first time music was sent as a coherent signal rather than encoded in a record
• A digital section with images drawn by teenagers, including self-portraits
It was one of the first public-participation space messaging projects — ordinary people contributing to an interstellar transmission. Cosmic Echo follows in this tradition.
• A continuous wave section (a "hello" to show the transmission is artificial)
• A coherent sounding section with musical compositions — the first time music was sent as a coherent signal rather than encoded in a record
• A digital section with images drawn by teenagers, including self-portraits
It was one of the first public-participation space messaging projects — ordinary people contributing to an interstellar transmission. Cosmic Echo follows in this tradition.
2008 — Across the Universe and the Doritos ad
Two very different transmissions in 2008 illustrate the range of what "sending a message to space" can mean.
Across the Universe (February 4, 2008) — NASA transmitted the Beatles song "Across the Universe" toward Polaris, the North Star, 433 light-years away. The transmission marked the 40th anniversary of the song's recording and the 45th anniversary of the Deep Space Network. It was the first music deliberately transmitted to deep space.
Doritos "Undiscovered" ad (June 2008) — A Doritos advertisement was transmitted by the University of Leicester toward the Ursa Major star cluster 42 light-years away. Yes: a corn chip commercial was sent to another star. It is perhaps the most honest message humanity has ever sent about itself.
Across the Universe (February 4, 2008) — NASA transmitted the Beatles song "Across the Universe" toward Polaris, the North Star, 433 light-years away. The transmission marked the 40th anniversary of the song's recording and the 45th anniversary of the Deep Space Network. It was the first music deliberately transmitted to deep space.
Doritos "Undiscovered" ad (June 2008) — A Doritos advertisement was transmitted by the University of Leicester toward the Ursa Major star cluster 42 light-years away. Yes: a corn chip commercial was sent to another star. It is perhaps the most honest message humanity has ever sent about itself.
2008 — A Message from Earth
Transmitted from RT-70 at Evpatoria on October 9, 2008, toward the exoplanet Gliese 581c in the constellation Libra (approximately 20 light-years away). The message contained 501 messages submitted online by members of the public — the first crowdsourced interstellar transmission.
The messages were collected through Bebo, then a major social network. They included everything from personal reflections to jokes to political statements. The signal is expected to arrive at Gliese 581 around 2029.
A Message from Earth established the model that Cosmic Echo has expanded: individual human voices, not institutional statements, transmitted toward the stars.
The messages were collected through Bebo, then a major social network. They included everything from personal reflections to jokes to political statements. The signal is expected to arrive at Gliese 581 around 2029.
A Message from Earth established the model that Cosmic Echo has expanded: individual human voices, not institutional statements, transmitted toward the stars.
2013 — Lone Signal
Lone Signal was a crowdfunded project that allowed anyone to purchase transmission time toward Gliese 526, a red dwarf 17.6 light-years away. Users could submit text messages via a website; the messages were transmitted continuously from the Jamesburg Earth Station in California.
Lone Signal transmitted for a few months before funding ran out in late 2013. The project was ahead of its time — a commercial, public-participation interstellar messaging service built on the idea that ordinary people should be able to put their words in space. It demonstrated demand without finding a sustainable business model.
Lone Signal transmitted for a few months before funding ran out in late 2013. The project was ahead of its time — a commercial, public-participation interstellar messaging service built on the idea that ordinary people should be able to put their words in space. It demonstrated demand without finding a sustainable business model.
2022 — Beacon in the Galaxy
Beacon in the Galaxy (BITG) is an updated version of the Arecibo message, proposed by Jonathan Jiang and colleagues at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It uses a similar binary encoding approach but includes updated information: a map of Earth using the hydrogen line as a unit of measurement, the biochemical composition of life on Earth, an updated diagram of the solar system, a digitized image of the Milky Way with our location marked, and time-stamped signals.
BITG was proposed for transmission toward the dense star fields in the direction of the galactic center — the densest concentration of potential recipients within a reasonable transmission range. As of 2026, transmission has been proposed but final logistics remain under discussion.
BITG was proposed for transmission toward the dense star fields in the direction of the galactic center — the densest concentration of potential recipients within a reasonable transmission range. As of 2026, transmission has been proposed but final logistics remain under discussion.
2026 and ongoing — Cosmic Echo
Cosmic Echo represents a fundamentally different approach to all that came before: not an institutional message designed by a committee of scientists, but thousands of individual human voices — unfiltered, uncurated, real.
Love letters and memorial tributes. Jokes and poetry. A person saying their name because they wanted the universe to know they existed. A child's first words, transmitted by a parent. A marriage proposal. A goodbye.
Every major message in the history above was decided by a small group of people who chose what humanity would say. Cosmic Echo inverts that: every person writes their own message. The collective broadcast of Cosmic Echo is the most honest portrait of humanity ever transmitted — not curated, not institutional, not representative. Just people, saying what they actually want to say.
The signal leaves Earth at the hydrogen line frequency, 1420 MHz — the same channel SETI researchers have monitored since 1960. It travels at the speed of light. It never stops. And it carries the one thing none of the transmissions above ever carried at scale: individual human voices, in their own words.
Love letters and memorial tributes. Jokes and poetry. A person saying their name because they wanted the universe to know they existed. A child's first words, transmitted by a parent. A marriage proposal. A goodbye.
Every major message in the history above was decided by a small group of people who chose what humanity would say. Cosmic Echo inverts that: every person writes their own message. The collective broadcast of Cosmic Echo is the most honest portrait of humanity ever transmitted — not curated, not institutional, not representative. Just people, saying what they actually want to say.
The signal leaves Earth at the hydrogen line frequency, 1420 MHz — the same channel SETI researchers have monitored since 1960. It travels at the speed of light. It never stops. And it carries the one thing none of the transmissions above ever carried at scale: individual human voices, in their own words.
~6 hours
Time to transmission
1420 MHz
Hydrogen line frequency
299,792 km/s
Signal speed
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