'Send my love to aliens,' says McCartney as Beatles tune is first to be beamed into space
By BARRY WIGMORE
2nd February 2008
Daily Mail
A song by The Beatles - the most successful band of all time - is the first to be beamed into space
The average music fan gets to inflict their taste on a few car passengers or, if they're lucky, the listeners of a radio request show.
NASA's Barry Geldzahler gets to impose his on the cosmos.
The agency's Deep Space Network is to transmit Dr Geldzahler's favourite Beatles tune 431 light years away, in an attempt to find life on other planets.
Paul McCartney and ET: Will the Fab Four's song reach alien ears as it becomes the first tune to be beamed into space?
On the 40th anniversary of the day it was recorded, "Across the Universe" will start travelling at 186,000 miles per SECOND but it will still take 431 years to reach its target, the North Star.
NASA is asking Beatles fans to play the song at the same time as its scientists push the "transmit" button at 2pm London time on Monday, in the hope that this noise "clutter" might also reach intelligent alien life.
The agency has broadcast the group's songs into space before but only on lowpower transmissions to the International Space Station. This is the first time any song has been transmitted into deep space.
Mr Geldzahler said: "I've been a Beatles fan for 45 years - as long as DSN has been around.
"What a joy this is, especially considering that Across the Universe is my personal favourite Beatles song."
The song was written in 1967, mainly by John Lennon with contributions by Sir Paul McCartney.
Sir Paul greeted the news yesterday with a message to DSN's headquarters at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, that said: "Amazing! Well done NASA! Send my love to the aliens. All the best, Paul."
As well as transmitting to and listening for aliens, DSN controls the spacecraft on longrange missions that have been launched to Mars, Venus and beyond.
The largest, most sensitive telecommunications system in the world, it has huge stations at Goldstone in California's Mojave Desert, near Madridin Spain, and in Canberra, Australia.
dailymail.co.uk
By BARRY WIGMORE
2nd February 2008
Daily Mail
A song by The Beatles - the most successful band of all time - is the first to be beamed into space
The average music fan gets to inflict their taste on a few car passengers or, if they're lucky, the listeners of a radio request show.
NASA's Barry Geldzahler gets to impose his on the cosmos.
The agency's Deep Space Network is to transmit Dr Geldzahler's favourite Beatles tune 431 light years away, in an attempt to find life on other planets.
Paul McCartney and ET: Will the Fab Four's song reach alien ears as it becomes the first tune to be beamed into space?
On the 40th anniversary of the day it was recorded, "Across the Universe" will start travelling at 186,000 miles per SECOND but it will still take 431 years to reach its target, the North Star.
NASA is asking Beatles fans to play the song at the same time as its scientists push the "transmit" button at 2pm London time on Monday, in the hope that this noise "clutter" might also reach intelligent alien life.
The agency has broadcast the group's songs into space before but only on lowpower transmissions to the International Space Station. This is the first time any song has been transmitted into deep space.
Mr Geldzahler said: "I've been a Beatles fan for 45 years - as long as DSN has been around.
"What a joy this is, especially considering that Across the Universe is my personal favourite Beatles song."
The song was written in 1967, mainly by John Lennon with contributions by Sir Paul McCartney.
Sir Paul greeted the news yesterday with a message to DSN's headquarters at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, that said: "Amazing! Well done NASA! Send my love to the aliens. All the best, Paul."
As well as transmitting to and listening for aliens, DSN controls the spacecraft on longrange missions that have been launched to Mars, Venus and beyond.
The largest, most sensitive telecommunications system in the world, it has huge stations at Goldstone in California's Mojave Desert, near Madridin Spain, and in Canberra, Australia.
dailymail.co.uk