Rhiannon Hendricks
The Voyager Golden Record is a message from Earth, intended to communicate a story of human life to extraterrestrials. It contains 116 images, a variety of natural sounds, and musical selections from different cultures and eras. The record was selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University and was sent on both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft. The Wedding Song, recorded by folk singer and ethnomusicologist John Cohen, is one of the musical selections included in the Voyager Golden Record.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of Song | Wedding Song |
| Artist | Unknown, now attributed to "Young girl of Huancavelica" |
| Album | Voyager Golden Record |
| Year | 1978 |
| Other Artists | John Cohen |
| Book | Murmurs of Earth |
| Author of Book | Carl Sagan, F. D. Drake, Ann Druyan, Timothy Ferris, Jon Lomberg, and Linda Salzman |
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What You'll Learn
The song is from the Voyager Golden Record
The Voyager Golden Record is a kind of time capsule that was launched into space by NASA, containing a story of the world of humans on Earth. Both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 carry the record into interstellar space, the region between stars where galactic plasma is present. The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University. The selection process took almost a year.
The record contains 116 images, a variety of natural sounds, musical selections from different cultures and eras, spoken greetings in 55 languages, human sounds like footsteps and laughter, and printed messages from President Jimmy Carter and U.N. Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim. The images are encoded in analog form and the record is designed to be played at 16-2/3 revolutions per minute.
The Voyager Golden Record also includes an hour-long recording of the heartbeat and brainwaves of Ann Druyan, who later married Carl Sagan. The recording was compressed into a minute-long segment to fit the record.
The song "Wedding Song" on the Voyager Golden Record was recorded by folk singer and ethnomusicologist John Cohen. The performance has traditionally been attributed to an unknown artist, but Cohen identified the singer as the "Young girl of Huancavelica". Cohen passed away in September, but he was able to provide details about the recording.
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The record was selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan
The Voyager Golden Record contains a variety of sounds, images, and messages from Earth. The record is carried on both the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft, which were launched by NASA to communicate a story of human life on Earth to potential extraterrestrials. The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University. The selection process took almost a year, and the final record included 116 images, natural sounds, musical selections from different cultures and eras, spoken greetings in 55 languages, human sounds like footsteps and laughter, and printed messages from political leaders.
The natural sounds selected by the committee included those made by surf, wind, thunder, and animals, such as bird songs and whale songs. The musical selections featured both Eastern and Western classics, as well as ethnic music. The spoken greetings began with Akkadian, spoken in Sumer about 6000 years ago, and ended with Wu, a modern Chinese dialect. The record also included an inspirational message in Morse code: "per aspera ad astra," which translates from Latin as "through hardships to the stars."
The committee considered including the song "Here Comes the Sun" from the Beatles' album Abbey Road, as Sagan had originally requested. However, this idea was opposed by EMI, and the song was ultimately not included due to copyright issues. The book "Murmurs of Earth," published in 1978 and written by Sagan, provides a detailed account of the creation of the record and includes a full list of its contents. The book was reissued in 1992 with a CD-ROM that replicated the Voyager record.
The Voyager Golden Record is a fascinating example of humanity's attempt to communicate its existence and culture to potential extraterrestrial civilizations. The committee, chaired by Carl Sagan, played a crucial role in selecting and curating the diverse range of content that now represents Earth and its inhabitants to the cosmos.
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The record was placed on two Voyager spacecraft
The Voyager Golden Record was placed on two Voyager spacecraft, Voyager 1 and Voyager 2, both of which have now reached interstellar space. The record was a kind of time capsule, intended to communicate a story of human life on Earth to extraterrestrials. The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University. The selection process took almost a year, and the record includes 116 images (one for calibration) and a variety of natural sounds, such as surf, wind, thunder, and animal sounds, including birds and whales. The record also contains musical selections from different cultures and eras, spoken greetings in 55 languages, and human sounds like footsteps and laughter. There are also printed messages from President Jimmy Carter and U.N. Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim.
The record is encased in a protective aluminium jacket, along with a cartridge and a needle. Instructions in symbolic language explain the origin of the spacecraft and how the record should be played. The record is designed to be played at 16-2/3 revolutions per minute, and the audio section begins with spoken greetings in Akkadian, a language spoken in Sumer around 6,000 years ago, and ends with Wu, a modern Chinese dialect. The Voyager Golden Record has inspired various works, including a book by Alice Gorman titled "Dr. Space Junk vs the Universe", and a Terry Riley/Kronos Quartet album called "Sun Rings", which samples and reworks transmissions sent back to Earth from the two Voyager probes.
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The record contains music, sounds, images, and messages from Earth
The Voyager Golden Record is a phonograph record that contains sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth. The record was sent on both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft, which were launched in 1977 to explore the outer Solar System. The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Dr. Carl Sagan of Cornell University. The record is intended as a message in a bottle of sorts, in the hope that any life forms outside of our solar system that may come across it will be able to learn about and understand human life on Earth.
The record contains 115-122 images, a variety of natural sounds, and an eclectic 90-minute musical program. The images are encoded in analogue form, and the record is designed to be played at 16-2/3 revolutions per minute. The natural sounds include those made by surf, wind, thunder, birds, whales, and other animals. The musical program includes both Eastern and Western classics, ethnic music, Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode", Mozart's "Magic Flute", a Zairian Pygmy girls' initiation song, a shakuhachi piece from Japan, and "Dark Was the Night", written and performed by Blind Willie Johnson.
The record also features spoken greetings in 55 different languages, all of which can be found on NASA's SoundCloud account. It contains samples of other human sounds like laughter, as well as nature sounds such as animal calls and weather patterns. The first voice recording on the Golden Record is an introduction from the UN Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim, who says:
> As the Secretary-General of the United Nations, an organization of 147 member states who represents almost all of the human inhabitants of the planet Earth, I send greetings on behalf of the people of our planet. We step out of our Solar system into the Universe, seeking only peace and friendship, to teach if we are called upon, to be taught if we are fortunate. We know full well that our planet and all its inhabitants are but a small part of this immense Universe that surrounds us, and it is with humility and hope that we take this step.
The record also includes a printed message from US President Jimmy Carter, who said:
> We hope someday, having solved the problems we face, to join a community of galactic civilizations. This record represents our hope and our determination, and our goodwill in a vast and awesome universe.
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The record is intended as a message to extraterrestrials
The Voyager Golden Record is a phonograph record that was attached to the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft, launched in 1977. The record contains sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth. It is intended as a message to extraterrestrials, a story of the world of humans on Earth. The record is a kind of time capsule, containing a present from a small, distant world—a token of our sounds, science, images, music, thoughts, and feelings. The contents of the record include greetings in 55 languages, natural sounds such as surf, wind, thunder, and animals, and a variety of musical selections from different cultures and eras.
The idea behind the record is that it will be encountered and played by advanced space-faring civilizations in interstellar space. The record is not directed at any particular star, but it is hoped that it will be discovered and provide a glimpse into human life on Earth. The creation of the record was chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University, who was given the task of assembling the greetings and selecting the content. Sagan and his associates took almost a year to assemble the 116 images and variety of sounds that make up the record.
The Voyager Golden Record has sparked interest and discussion about the possibility of communication with extraterrestrials. The record is intended as a message to any intelligent extraterrestrial life forms who may encounter it, and it provides a unique snapshot of human life and culture. The record has also faced some challenges, such as the legal issue of including the song "Here Comes the Sun" by the Beatles without securing the necessary permissions. Despite this, the record has received recognition, with the 40th-anniversary edition winning a Grammy Award in 2018.
The record's musical contributors include folk singer and ethnomusicologist John Cohen, who recorded the song traditionally titled "Wedding Song" on the Voyager Golden Record. The performance has been attributed to an unknown artist, but Cohen's contribution was recognized posthumously. The record also includes a greeting by Sagan's six-year-old son, Nick, as well as human sounds like footsteps and laughter. The Voyager Golden Record represents a unique attempt to communicate with potential extraterrestrial civilizations and to share a piece of human culture and history with the cosmos.
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Frequently asked questions
The wedding song from the Voyager is from the Voyager Golden Record, carried on both the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft.
The Voyager Golden Record is a kind of time capsule containing images, sounds, and messages from Earth, intended to communicate a story of humans to potential extraterrestrials.
The record contains 116 images, natural sounds (including animal sounds), musical selections from different cultures and eras, spoken greetings in 55 languages, human sounds like footsteps and laughter, and printed messages from President Jimmy Carter and U.N. Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim.
The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University.
