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Twenty Thousand Hertz

The Voyager Golden Record: Humanity’s message to the cosmos

Twenty Thousand Hertz

Dallas Taylor

Music, Design, Arts, Music Commentary

4.84.1K Ratings

🗓️ 22 April 2019

⏱️ 34 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In the late '70s, NASA launched Voyagers 1 & 2 to explore the furthest reaches of our solar system and beyond. But something amazing was included on those space probes... a 90-minute time capsule of sounds, language, and music from Earth called The Golden Record. Its intended recipient? Any intelligent extraterrestrial life that might stumble upon it. What did Carl Sagan and his team put on the record to represent all of humanity? How would aliens decode it? For the first time ever, the album will be deconstructed track-by-track. Featuring Tim Ferris and Linda Salzman Sagan, two pioneers behind the record. Twenty Thousand Hertz is produced out of the studios of Defacto Sound, and hosted by Dallas Taylor. Follow the show on Twitter & Facebook.  Become a monthly contributor at 20k.org/donate. If you know what this week's mystery sound is, tell us at mystery.20k.org. Get your copy of the Voyager Golden Record at ozmarecords.com. Episode transcript, music, and credits can be found here: https://www.20k.org/episodes/voyagergoldenrecord  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

As the Secretary General of the United Nations, who represent almost all of the human inhabitants

0:11.0

of the planet Earth, I send greetings on behalf of the people of our planet.

0:17.0

You're listening to 20,000 Hertz. I'm Dallas Taylor.

0:21.6

We step out of our solar system into the universe, seeking only peace and friendship,

0:28.6

to teach if we are called upon, to be taught if we are fortunate.

0:33.6

We know full well that our planet and all its inhabitants are but a small part of this immense universe that surrounds us,

0:43.9

and it is with humility and hope that we take this step.

0:52.0

That was Kurt Waldheim, the fourth secretary general of the UN.

0:56.5

And what you just heard is the first track from the most epic album of all time.

1:01.9

It was made by a team of scientists, artists, and historians,

1:05.7

hoping that one day other intelligent life forms might find it.

1:09.6

It's the Voyager Golden Record. It's also a time

1:13.1

capsule, and there's actually two of them. They're currently over 11 billion miles away,

1:19.1

hurtling through space at over 30,000 miles an hour. These literal golden records are attached to

1:25.7

the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 space probes.

1:28.8

These probes were launched in the late 70s, and today they're further away from Earth than any

1:33.8

other human-made object.

1:36.3

The Voyager probes could continue to explore worlds unknown for more than a billion years,

1:41.6

so there is a theoretical chance that alien life could find one of these probes.

1:47.0

In the 70s, a committee chaired by Carl Sagan curated a record to ride on each craft.

1:53.0

Here's Carl talking about the record on the original Cosmos television series.

1:57.0

A phonograph record. Golden, delicate, with instructions for use.

...

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