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The Voyager Golden Record is a phonograph record included aboard both of the two unmanned Voyager spacecraft launched by NASA in 1977. (1) The Voyagers were constructed by NASA to be deep space probes, launched to collect information about distant solar systems and planets. They are currently 15 billion miles away from earth and are the perfect container to bring a record of humanity into deep space. The record contains sounds, data, and images to portray concepts of life and culture on Earth, and are intended for any intelligent space-faring life form who may find it to understand our planet. (2)

The Voyager flights continue towards the edges of our known universe and each record included is expected to remain usable for over a billion years, making them the longest lasting objects humans have ever made. Carl Sagan noted when they were launched that “If the spacecraft is encountered and the record played it will only be possible by an advanced space-faring civilization in interstellar space; but the launching of this 'bottle' into the cosmic 'ocean' says something very hopeful about life on this planet.” (3)

The record is constructed of gold-plated copper so that it won't oxidize, react to chemicals, or radioactively decay. Contained on the record is an array of sounds from the natural universe, from bird and whale song to noises made by the wind and surf. There are also greetings in 55 different languages and traditional music from around the world. All of the diagrams engraved into the record act as an instruction manual for how these images and sounds can be reconstructed. (4)

The creation of the golden record is a marvel of technology, engineering, human ingenuity and design precision. The attempt to contact the universe and curate the story of humanity onto a single disc; as a record of our existence in cosmic history is itself an incredible achievement. Even if it is never actually listened to.(5)