On this night in science
A message sent to the stars
November 16, 1974
On this day in 1974, the giant Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico beamed a short message into space, toward a faraway cluster of stars. The message was a picture made of ones and zeros, showing numbers, a tiny drawing of a person and a map of our solar system.
Why it mattered
It was sent mostly to show that it could be done. The stars it was aimed at are so far away that the message is still traveling, and it will be for a very, very long time.
Wonder together
If you could send one picture far out into space, what would you draw?