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Polaris to get a tune-in from the Beatles

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16 years 9 months ago #62139 by Seanie_Morris
Polaris to get a tune-in from the Beatles was created by Seanie_Morris
The Beatles are about to become radio stars in a whole new way.

NASA on Monday will broadcast the Beatles' song "Across the Universe" across the galaxy to Polaris, the North Star.

This first-ever beaming of a radio song by the space agency directly into deep space is nostalgia-driven. It celebrates the 40th anniversary of the song, the 45th anniversary of NASA's Deep Space Network, which communicates with its distant probes, and the 50th anniversary of NASA.

"Send my love to the aliens," Paul McCartney told NASA through a Beatles historian. "All the best, Paul."

The song, written by McCartney and John Lennon, may have a ticket to ride and will be flying at the speed of light. But it will take 431 years along a long and winding road to reach its final destination. That's because Polaris is 2.5 quadrillion miles away.

NASA loaded an MP3 of the song, just under four minutes in its original version, and will transmit it digitally at 7 p.m. EST Monday (Midnight Tuesday Irish Time) from its giant antenna in Madrid, Spain. But if you wanted to hear it on Polaris, you would need an antenna and a receiver to convert it back to music, the same way people receive satellite television.

The idea came from Martin Lewis, a Los Angeles-based Beatles historian, who then got permission from McCartney, Yoko Ono and the two companies that own the rights to Beatles' music. One of those companies, Apple, was happy to approve the idea because is "always looking for new markets," Lewis said.

Perhaps coincidentally, the song's launching comes a day before the release of the DVD of the Julie Taymor movie named after the Beatles hit.

Midlands Astronomy Club.
Radio Presenter (Midlands 103), Space Enthusiast, Astronomy Outreach Co-ordinator.
Former IFAS Chairperson and Secretary.

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16 years 9 months ago #62153 by phoenix
Replied by phoenix on topic Re: Polaris to get a tune-in from the Beatles
Oh bloody great! Our first alien contact will be 'You have been reported to the server for spamming' :lol:

Kieran
16" ODK (incoming), Mesu Mount 200, APM TMB 80mm, SXV H16, SXV H9
J16 An Carraig Observatory
ancarraigobservatory.co.uk/

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16 years 9 months ago #62161 by pj30something
Replied by pj30something on topic Re: Polaris to get a tune-in from the Beatles
Could be worse. It could have been a Spice Girls song they beamed up there.........

I'm thinking "GOODBYE" would have be an appropriate one.

Paul C
My next scope is going to be a Vixen VMC200L Catadioptric OTA

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16 years 9 months ago #62163 by Petermark
Replied by Petermark on topic Re: Polaris to get a tune-in from the Beatles
Polaris already has it's own drumbeat:

Hipparcos fixes the distance of Polaris at 430 light-years, and the researchers conclude that Polaris pulsates with an overtone, at a rate 40 per cent faster than expected for a Cepheid of its size and luminosity. Several other Cepheids gauged by Hipparcos also exhibit overtones. Were these not recognized as fast pulsators they would give false impressions in the Cepheid distance scale.

Hope it makes good music with the Beatles.

Mark.
Anybody who says that Earthshine is reflected Sunshine is talking Moonshine.

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16 years 9 months ago #62224 by Dread

Could be worse. It could have been a Spice Girls song they beamed up there.........


Could have been better, it could have been the Spice Girls they beamed up there, Scary, Dopey, Grumpy and Ugly, the whole shaggin' lot of them. :lol:

Down with vwls.

Declan
Carl Zeiss Jena 10x50, Bresser Messier R102

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16 years 9 months ago #62227 by pj30something
Replied by pj30something on topic Re: Polaris to get a tune-in from the Beatles
AGREED.

Paul C
My next scope is going to be a Vixen VMC200L Catadioptric OTA

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