ABOUT A SIMPLE RESPONSE TO AN ELEMENTAL MESSAGE:

 

'A Simple Response to an Elemental Message' (ASREM) was a non-for-profit, interdisciplinary research project and collaborative interstellar radio transmission whose content was generated by the worldwide public in response to the globally-pertinent question; "How will our present, environmental interactions shape the future?" The initiative was the result of a two-year collaboration between Paul Quast and the University of Edinburgh, UK Astronomy Technology Centre and the European Space Agency as well as researchers within the European Southern Observatory, Johns Hopkins University and numerous other partners.

Altogether, 3775 individuals from 146 countries/ territories across the world submitted their perspectives in ~16 different languages. At 20:00 UTC on 10 October 2016, the ASREM interstellar radio message was transmitted by the European Space Agency's Cebreros Deep-Space Tracking Station (a 35-metre diameter, parabolic transmitter) towards Polaris; the North Star which is approximately 434 light years (133 pc) from Earth. An analysis of this initiative’s content is currently informing a series of peer-lead research papers.

​Although completed prior to the establishment of Beyond the Earth foundation, this project is hosted as a legacy for further public education and engagement. The full listing of publicly-contributed messages may be accessed via the digital interface below, in addition to select press materials

 

Page last updated: 10 Oct 2021
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