NASA Plans to Send Message into the Milky Way to Help Extraterrestrials Locate Earth with This Image.
The image of a male-female couple will be encoded in binary before being sent into space as part of a project called “Binary Interstellar Transmission (BITG).”
According to Express, the couple in the image is designed to wave in order to create a friendly impression and avoid scaring extraterrestrials.
Scientists believe that extraterrestrials may understand the type of encoding used.
“Binary code is universally applicable to all forms of intelligence. It is the simplest mathematical form, as it only involves two opposing states: zero and one, yes or no, black or white,” scientists stated.
The male-female couple is depicted waving to avoid frightening extraterrestrials. (Photo: Sputnik)
In addition to the image of the couple, NASA scientists also plan to send other encoded signals into space, including mathematical concepts, fundamental physics, and information about the biochemical components of life on Earth to establish a communication channel.
To transmit this message to the center of the Milky Way, the research team intends to use the Allen Telescope Array of the SETI Institute in California and the 500-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope in China.
To ensure that the message reaches extraterrestrials, astrophysicists will direct it towards a dense star cluster near the center of the Milky Way. This location was chosen because scientists believe it is the most promising area for the existence of extraterrestrial life.
This is not the first time scientists have sent an encoded message to extraterrestrials.
In 1974, astronomers sent a similar message “Beacon in the Galaxy” using the Arecibo Observatory located in Puerto Rico. At that time, the message targeted a star cluster in our galaxy, approximately 25,000 light-years away from Earth.
However, sending messages to help extraterrestrials locate Earth has sparked much controversy.
The brilliant physicist Stephen Hawking once warned that sending signals into space carries many dangers.
“In my view, the risks and benefits of sending messages are both small. It would be better and safer if we could travel into space and find our neighbors,” stated Dr. Anders Sandberg, a researcher at the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford University, regarding sending messages to extraterrestrials.
