Life as we know, will it be?
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From: 3rd Rock
Life as we know, will it be?
Pioneer 10 Spacecraft Falls Silent
Pioneer 10, the first spacecraft to venture out of the solar system, has fallen silent after traveling billions of miles from Earth on a mission that has lasted nearly 31 years.
Its last signal, Pioneer 10 was 7.6 billion miles from Earth; the signal, traveling at the speed of light, took 11 hours and 20 minutes to arrive.
Pioneer 10 was launched March 2, 1972, on a 21-month mission. It became the first spacecraft to pass through the asteroid belt and the first to obtain close-up images of Jupiter. In 1983, it became the first manmade object to leave
the solar system when it passed the orbit of distant Pluto.
Pioneer 10 carries a gold plaque engraved with a message of goodwill and a map showing the Earth's location in the solar system. The spacecraft continues to coast toward the star Aldebaran in the constellation Taurus. It will take 2 million years to reach it. Imagine 2 million years!!!
What will life be like then?
At times, we are so small in the big picture of the universe.
Pioneer 10, the first spacecraft to venture out of the solar system, has fallen silent after traveling billions of miles from Earth on a mission that has lasted nearly 31 years.
Its last signal, Pioneer 10 was 7.6 billion miles from Earth; the signal, traveling at the speed of light, took 11 hours and 20 minutes to arrive.
Pioneer 10 was launched March 2, 1972, on a 21-month mission. It became the first spacecraft to pass through the asteroid belt and the first to obtain close-up images of Jupiter. In 1983, it became the first manmade object to leave
the solar system when it passed the orbit of distant Pluto.
Pioneer 10 carries a gold plaque engraved with a message of goodwill and a map showing the Earth's location in the solar system. The spacecraft continues to coast toward the star Aldebaran in the constellation Taurus. It will take 2 million years to reach it. Imagine 2 million years!!!
What will life be like then?
At times, we are so small in the big picture of the universe.
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FTE Leadership Emeritus
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From: 3rd Rock
Envision, and dream, if it could only talk, about its travels, it will see things that we only fantasize of and Hollywood.......fills our minds with........of Nebulas and star fields, stellar nurseries, black holes…………
Last edited by IB Tim; Nov 25, 2003 at 08:39 PM.
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Let's hope that the Klingon race do not use the plaque to invade..
And yes, we are but an insignificant spec of organic material in the pallet of time, drifting for a fleeting moment away from the mass from whence we came. If we look to the distant stars, we can see things that may no longer exist.. That is amazing, and fantastic, and true. Lie on you back on a clear dark night, and just look up there. Then you really will feel small.
Theo
And yes, we are but an insignificant spec of organic material in the pallet of time, drifting for a fleeting moment away from the mass from whence we came. If we look to the distant stars, we can see things that may no longer exist.. That is amazing, and fantastic, and true. Lie on you back on a clear dark night, and just look up there. Then you really will feel small.
Theo
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Grain of sand in the Ocean!
If it doesn't get pulled into a planet or star's gravitational field and burned up in their atmosphere rendering it a piece of molten junk. Or sucked into a black hole transporting it into another dimension of space. The gravitation field of a blackhole would crush it down the size of an atom anyway. So the odds of it making it into the hands of another intelligent race are about as good as me winning the lottery everyday for the rest of my life.
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Along with that gold plaque was a gold recording of earth sounds that was mounted on the outside. 31 years ago the state of the art recording media was a 33 1/3rpm record. Can you imagine even now if Pioneer 10 returned to earth few of us could even play the dang thing! What would aliens think?
Exploration has always fired the imagination. This was a remarkable achievement for all of us and especially so for the many scientists and engineers that worked on this project. Makes me proud!
Exploration has always fired the imagination. This was a remarkable achievement for all of us and especially so for the many scientists and engineers that worked on this project. Makes me proud!
Last edited by aerocolorado; Nov 26, 2003 at 10:03 AM.
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Has anyone ever been to Arecibo in Puerto Rico. I got a chance to go about 6 years ago and it was unbelievable! It is a giant satellite built into the earth and they use it to send messages into space and to search for signals in space.
It is remarkable to think of just how small we are compared to the vastness of the universe.
I dont even want to think about what the world will be like in 2 million years hopefully we will have advanced past all the stupid issues that plague us today, like hunger, race, and abuse to human life.
It is remarkable to think of just how small we are compared to the vastness of the universe.
I dont even want to think about what the world will be like in 2 million years hopefully we will have advanced past all the stupid issues that plague us today, like hunger, race, and abuse to human life.