Wednesday, 3 July 2013

The probes PIONEER 10 and PIONEER 11

The probes PIONEER 10 and PIONEER 11, launched in 1972 and 1973, both carry the space-age equivalent of a message in a bottle. The two crafts explored Jupiter and Saturn, respectively, and then left our solar system going in opposite directions. It was Carl Sagan's idea to bolt a gold-plated plaque (shown below) to each of them for any ET who might see it in the next 100 million years or so. The plaques show Earth's position in the solar system; the sun's relationship to other stars; a diagram of a hydrogen atom; and a sketch of a man and woman standing next to the probe.

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