View source for Voyager Golden Record

{{short description|Two phonograph records on board Voyager spacecraft}}
{{redirect|Golden Disk|the Korean music awards|Golden Disc Awards}}
{{Multiple image |direction=vertical |align=right |image1=The Sounds of Earth - GPN-2000-001976.jpg|caption1=The [[Voyager program|Voyager]] Golden Record|image2=The Sounds of Earth Record Cover - GPN-2000-001978.jpg|caption2=Cover of the Voyager Golden Record|image3=Voyager.jpg|caption3=The golden record's location on Voyager (middle-bottom-left)}}

The '''Voyager Golden Records''' are two identical [[phonograph record]]s, with one copy aboard each of the two [[Voyager spacecraft]] launched in 1977.<ref name="TA-20170630">{{cite magazine |last=Lafrance |first=Adrienne |title=Solving the Mystery of Whose Laughter Is On the Golden Record |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/06/solving-the-mystery-of-whose-laughter-is-on-the-golden-record/532197/ |date=30 June 2017 |magazine=[[The Atlantic]] |access-date=1 July 2017 }}</ref> The records [[Contents of the Voyager Golden Record|contain sounds and data]] to reconstruct [[raster scan]] images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on [[Earth]], and are intended for any intelligent [[extraterrestrial life]] form who may find them. The records are a [[time capsule]].

Although neither Voyager spacecraft is heading toward any particular star, ''[[Voyager 1]]'' will pass within 1.6 [[light-year]]s' distance of the star [[Gliese 445]], currently in the constellation [[Camelopardalis]], in about [[Timeline of the far future#Humanity and human constructs|40,000 years]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/interstellar.html |title=Voyager – Interstellar Mission |website=[[Jet Propulsion Laboratory]] |publisher=[[NASA]] |date=January 25, 2010}}</ref>

[[Carl Sagan]] noted that "The spacecraft will be encountered and the record played only if there are advanced space-faring [[civilization]]s in [[interstellar space]], but the launching of this [[Message in a bottle|'bottle' into the cosmic 'ocean']] says something very hopeful about life on this planet."<ref name="Voyager - Golden Record">{{cite web |url=http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/goldenrec.html |title=Voyager – Golden Record |website=Jet Propulsion Laboratory |publisher=NASA |access-date=September 23, 2010}}</ref>

== Background ==
The ''[[Voyager 1]]'' probe is currently the [[List of artificial objects leaving the Solar System|farthest human-made object]] from [[Earth]]. Both ''Voyager 1'' and ''Voyager 2'' have reached interstellar space, the region between stars where the [[Interstellar medium|galactic plasma]] is present.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/voyager/voyager20130912.html |title=NASA Spacecraft Embarks on Historic Journey Into Interstellar Space |date=September 12, 2013 |publisher=NASA |access-date=April 15, 2014 |archive-date=June 11, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200611233345/https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/voyager/voyager20130912.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Like their predecessors ''[[Pioneer 10]]'' and ''[[Pioneer 11|11]]'', which featured a simple [[Pioneer plaque|plaque]] (the idea of [[Eric Burgess]] and Carl Sagan),<ref>{{cite news|url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1982-04/1982_04_BYTE_07-04_Human_Factors_Engineering#page/n213/mode/2up|title=The Osborne 1, Zeke's New Friends, and Spelling Revisited|work=BYTE|date=April 1982|last=Pournelle|first=Jerry|pages=212–240}}</ref> both ''Voyager 1'' and ''[[Voyager 2]]'' were launched by [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration|NASA]] with a message aboard—a kind of [[time capsule]], intended to communicate to extraterrestrials a story of the world of [[human]]s on Earth.<ref name = "Voyager - Golden Record"/>

While the ''Pioneer'' plaques established the precedent, the idea for including information on humanity onboard the ''Voyager''s was the brainchild of [[John R. Casani]], the project manager. He delegated the task to [[Carl Sagan]], who with colleagues [[Linda Salzman]] and [[Frank Drake]] realized a metal phonograph record with visual information (encoded into grooves by a company in Boulder, Colorado) would outlast [[magnetic tape]]s in the outer space environment. The budget Casani gave Sagan was $1,500 for six weeks of work (though Sagan and his colleagues contributed more money out of pocket); he stipulated the Record had to be as light as the ''Pioneer'' plaque.<ref>{{cite letter |first=John R. |last=Casani |recipient=Carl Sagan |subject=NASA Correspondence from Box 1246, Folder 8, Seth MacFarlane Collection |date=November 29, 1976|location=Library of Congress|language=American English}}</ref><ref name="Brancolini 2007">{{cite web | last=Brancolini | first=Janna |editor=Phil Davis| title=Voyager at 30: Looking Beyond and Within | website=NASA Science | date=August 20, 2007 | url=https://science.nasa.gov/missions/voyager-program/voyager-at-30-the-golden-record/ | access-date=June 28, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Sagan|first=Carl|title=Murmurs of Earth|pages=11–19|date=January 1, 1978|publisher=Random House|isbn=9780394410470}}</ref>

{{quote|This is a present from a small, distant world, a token of our sounds, our science, our images, our music, our thoughts and our feelings. We are attempting to survive our time so we may live into yours. |[[President Jimmy Carter]]}}

== Contents ==
{{Main|Contents of the Voyager Golden Record}}

The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by [[Carl Sagan]] of [[Cornell University]]. The selection of content for the record took almost a year. Sagan and his associates assembled 116 images (one used for calibration) and a variety of natural sounds, such as those made by surf, wind, thunder and animals (including the songs of [[Birdsong|birds]] and [[whale sound|whales]]). To this they added audio content to represent humanity: spoken greetings in 55 ancient and modern languages, including a spoken greeting in English by [[Secretary-General of the United Nations|U.N. Secretary-General]] [[Kurt Waldheim]] and a greeting by Sagan's six-year-old son, [[Nick Sagan|Nick]]; other human sounds, like footsteps and laughter (Sagan's);<ref name="TA-20170630" /> the inspirational message ''[[Per aspera ad astra]]'' in [[Morse code]]; and musical selections from different cultures and eras. The record also includes a printed message from U.S. president [[Jimmy Carter]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Gambino |first1=Megan |title=What Is on Voyager's Golden Record? |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/what-is-on-voyagers-golden-record-73063839/ |website=Smithsonian Magazine |access-date=10 May 2021 |language=en}}</ref>
{{Listen
| filename    = Voyager Golden Record greeting in English.ogg
| title       = "Hello from the children of Planet Earth"
| description = A child's greeting in English recorded on the Voyager Golden Record ([[Nick Sagan]], aged 6)
| type        = speech
| image = 
}}
The collection of images includes many photographs and diagrams, both in black and white and color. The first images are of scientific interest, showing mathematical and physical quantities, the [[Solar System]] and its planets, [[DNA]], and human [[Outline of human anatomy|anatomy]] and [[Human reproduction|reproduction]]. Care was taken to include not only pictures of humanity, but also some of animals, insects, plants and landscapes. Images of humanity depict a broad range of cultures. These images show food, architecture, and humans in portraits as well as going about their day-to-day lives. Many pictures are annotated with one or more indications of scales of time, size, or mass. Some images contain indications of [[chemical composition]]. All measures used on the pictures are defined in the first few images using physical references that are likely to be consistent anywhere in the [[universe]].

The musical selection is also varied, featuring works by composers such as [[J. S. Bach]] (interpreted by [[Glenn Gould]] and by [[Karl Richter (conductor)|Karl Richter]]), [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]], [[Ludwig van Beethoven|Beethoven]] (played by the [[Budapest String Quartet]]), and [[Igor Stravinsky|Stravinsky]]. The disc also includes music by [[Guan Pinghu]], [[Blind Willie Johnson]], [[Chuck Berry]], [[Kesarbai Kerkar]], [[Valya Balkanska]], and electronic composer [[Laurie Spiegel]], as well as [[Azerbaijani folk music]] ([[Mugham]]) by oboe player [[Kamil Jalilov]].<ref>Anne Kressler. [https://www.azer.com/aiweb/categories/magazine/22_folder/22_articles/22_extraterrestrial.html Azerbaijani Music Selected for Voyager Spacecraft] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190703235101/http://azer.com/aiweb/categories/magazine/22_folder/22_articles/22_extraterrestrial.html |date=2019-07-03 }} // Azerbaijan International. — Summer 1994 (2.2). — P. 24-25.</ref><ref>[[Natalie Angier]]. The Canon: The Beautiful Basics of Science. — Faber & Faber, 2009. — P. 408.</ref><ref>Mike Wehner. [https://bgr.com/2017/11/28/golden-record-voyager-nasa-buy/ You can now buy the NASA audio record that we sent to aliens] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190712003112/https://bgr.com/2017/11/28/golden-record-voyager-nasa-buy/ |date=2019-07-12 }} // bgr.com. — November 28th, 2017.</ref><ref>Aida Huseynova. New images of Azerbaijani Mugham in Twentieth Century // The Music of Central Asia. — Indiana University Press, 2016. — P. 400.</ref><ref>Margaret Kaeter. Nations in Transitions: The Caucasian Republics. — Infobase Publishing, 2004. — P. 91.</ref> The selection of music for the record was completed by a team composed of Carl Sagan as project director, [[Linda Salzman Sagan]], [[Frank Drake]], [[Alan Lomax]], [[Ann Druyan]] as creative director, artist [[Jon Lomberg]], ethnomusicologist [[Robert E. Brown]], [[Timothy Ferris]] as producer, and [[Jimmy Iovine]] as sound engineer.<ref name=Smithsonian/><ref name="TimFerris">{{cite magazine|last1=Ferris|first1=Timothy|title=How the Voyager Golden Record Was Made|url=https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/voyager-golden-record-40th-anniversary-timothy-ferris|access-date=15 November 2017|magazine=The New Yorker|date=20 August 2017}}</ref> The inclusion of Berry's "[[Johnny B. Goode]]" was controversial, with Lomax claiming that rock music was "adolescent", to which Sagan replied, "There are a lot of adolescents on the planet."<ref name=Smithsonian>{{cite web |title=What Is on Voyager's Golden Record? |first=Megan |last=Gambino |url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/what-is-on-voyagers-golden-record-73063839/?no-ist=&page=4 |date=April 22, 2012 |work=[[The Smithsonian]] |access-date=December 7, 2015}}</ref> It also included the sounds of humpbacked whales from the 1970 album by [[Roger Payne]], ''[[Songs of the Humpback Whale (album)|Songs of the Humpback Whale]]''.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1121/1.387428|title=The resounding humpback|year=1982|last1=Roth|first1=Mark|journal=The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America|volume=71|issue=2|page=513|bibcode=1982ASAJ...71..513R}}</ref>

The Golden Record also carries an hour-long recording of the brainwaves of Ann Druyan, compressed into a minute of audio.<ref name=Smithsonian/> During the recording of the brainwaves, Druyan thought of many topics, including Earth's history, civilizations and the problems they face, and what it was like to fall in love.<ref>{{cite book |last=Sagan |first=Carl |title=Billions and Billions: Thoughts on Life and Death at the Brink of the Millennium |publisher=Random House |location=New York |year=1997 |isbn=0-679-41160-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/billionsbillions00saga }}</ref>

After NASA had received [[Pioneer plaque#Criticism|criticism over the nudity on the Pioneer plaque]] (line drawings of a naked man and woman), the agency chose not to allow Sagan and his colleagues to include a photograph of a nude man and woman on the record. Instead, only a silhouette of the couple was included.<ref>Lomberg, Jon, "Pictures of Earth" in {{cite book |last=Sagan |first=Carl |title=Murmurs of Earth |publisher=Ballantine Books |location=New York |year=1979 |isbn=978-0-34528-396-2 |url=https://archive.org/details/murmursofearthvo00saga }}</ref> However, the record does contain "Diagram of vertebrate evolution", by [[Jon Lomberg]], with drawings of an anatomically correct naked male and naked female, showing external organs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/sceneearth.html |title=Voyager Record Photograph Index |website=Jet Propulsion Laboratory |publisher=NASA | access-date=December 20, 2014}}</ref> The person waving on the diagram was also changed: on the Pioneer plaque, the man is waving, while on the "Vertebrate evolution" image, the woman is waving.

The [[pulsar]] map and hydrogen molecule diagram are shared in common with the [[Pioneer plaque]].

The 116 images (one used for calibration) are encoded in analogue form and composed of 512 vertical lines. The remainder of the record is audio, designed to be played at {{frac|16|2|3}} revolutions per minute.

[[Jimmy Iovine]], who was still early in his career as a music producer, served as sound engineer for the project at the recommendation of [[John Lennon]], who was contacted to contribute but was unable to take part.<ref name="Ferris">{{cite magazine |last1=Ferris |first1=Timothy |title=How the Voyager Golden Record Was Made |url=https://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/voyager-golden-record-40th-anniversary-timothy-ferris |access-date=November 15, 2017 |magazine=The New Yorker |date=August 20, 2017}}</ref>

Sagan's team wanted to include the [[The Beatles|Beatles]] 1969 song "[[Here Comes the Sun]]" on the record, but the record company [[EMI]], which held the copyrights, declined.<ref>{{cite news|first=David|last=Shribman|url=https://www.latimes.com/books/la-ca-jc-review-vinyl-frontier-jonathan-scott-20190711-story.html|title=Review: The Voyager spacecraft holds a golden record for aliens. 'Vinyl Frontier' tells why|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=July 18, 2019|access-date=November 25, 2019}}</ref> In the 1978 book ''Murmurs of Earth'', the failure to secure permission for the song is cited as one of the legal challenges faced by the team compiling the Voyager Golden Record.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/28apr_voyager2|first=Tony|last=Phillips|title=Voyager, The Love Story|publisher=NASA Science|date=April 28, 2011|access-date=November 25, 2019|archive-date=November 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191102052552/https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/28apr_voyager2|url-status=dead}}</ref> In the book, Sagan said that the Beatles favoured the idea, but "[they] did not own the copyright, and the legal status of the piece seemed too murky to risk."<ref>{{cite book| last1=Sagan| first1=Carl| year=1978| author-link=Carl Sagan| last2=Drake| first2=Frank D.| author-link2=Frank Drake| last3=Lomberg| first3=Jon| author-link3=Jon Lomberg| last4=Sagan| first4=Linda Salzman| author-link4=Linda Salzman Sagan| last5=Druyan| first5=Ann
| author-link5=Ann Druyan| last6=Ferris| first6=Timothy| author-link6=Timothy Ferris| title=Murmurs of Earth: The Voyager Interstellar Record| publisher=Random House| location=New York| isbn=0-394-41047-5}}</ref> When asked about the obstacle presented by EMI with regard to "Here Comes the Sun", despite the artists' wishes, Ann Druyan said in 2015: "Yeah, that was one of those cases of having to see the tragedy of our planet. Here's a chance to send a piece of music into the distant future and distant time, and to give it this kind of immortality, and they're worried about money ... we got this telegram [from EMI] saying that it will be $50,000 per record for two records, and the entire Voyager record cost $18,000 to produce."<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Michael|last=Haskoor|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-golden-record-ann-druyan-interview/|title=A Space Jam, Literally: Meet the Creative Director Behind NASA's 'Golden Record,' an Interstellar Mixtape|magazine=[[Vice (magazine)|Vice]]|date=August 5, 2015|access-date=November 25, 2019}}</ref> However, this was denied in 2017 by [[Timothy Ferris]]; in his recollection, "Here Comes the Sun" was not seriously considered for inclusion.<ref name="Ferris" />

In July 2015, NASA uploaded the audio contents of the record to the audio streaming service [[SoundCloud]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://soundcloud.com/nasa/sets/golden-record-greetings-to-the |title=Greetings to the Universe |via=SoundCloud |access-date=April 20, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://soundcloud.com/nasa/sets/golden-record-sounds-of |title=Sounds of Earth |via=SoundCloud |access-date=April 20, 2016}}</ref>

===Images===
<gallery mode="packed" heights="225px" caption="Select images on the Voyager Golden Record">
File:Voyager golden record 77 supermarket.gif|A woman in a store
File:Voyager golden record 11 jupiter.gif|A photo of [[Jupiter]] with its diameter indicated
File:Voyager golden record 82 feeding.gif|Depiction of humans licking, eating, and drinking as modes of consumption
File:Voyager golden record 110 arecibo.gif|A photo of the [[Arecibo Observatory]] marked with an indication of scale
File:Voyager golden record 111 systemoftheworld.gif|A photo of page 6 from [[Isaac Newton]]{{'}}s ''[[Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica]]'' Volume III, ''De mundi systemate'' (The System of the World)
File:Voyager golden record 13 earth.gif|A photograph of Egypt, Red Sea, Sinai Peninsula and the Nile from Earth orbit annotated with the chemical composition of Earth's atmosphere
File:Diagram of vertebrate evolution.gif| "Diagram of vertebrate evolution",  by [[Jon Lomberg]] 
</gallery>{{clear}}

== Playback ==
[[Image:Voyager Golden Record Cover Explanation.svg|thumb|Explanation of the Voyager record cover diagram, as provided by NASA]]

In the upper left-hand corner of the record cover is a drawing of the [[phonograph record]] and the stylus carried with it. The stylus is in the correct position to play the record from the beginning. Written around it in [[Binary Arithmetic|binary notation]] is the correct time of one rotation of the record, 3.6 seconds, expressed in time units of 0.70 billionths of a second, the time period associated with the radiation emitted or absorbed by a [[Hydrogen line|fundamental transition of the hydrogen atom]]. The drawing indicates that the record should be played from the outside in. Below this drawing is a side view of the record and stylus, with a binary number giving the time to play one side of the record—about an hour (more precisely, between 53 and 54 minutes).

The information in the upper right-hand portion of the cover is designed to show how pictures are to be constructed from the recorded signals. The top drawing shows the typical signal that occurs at the start of a picture. The picture is made from this signal, which traces the picture as a series of vertical lines, similar to analog [[television]] (in which the picture is a series of horizontal lines). Picture lines 1, 2 and 3 are noted in binary numbers, and the duration of one of the "picture lines", about 8 milliseconds, is noted. The drawing immediately below shows how these lines are to be drawn vertically, with staggered "interlace" to give the correct picture rendition. Immediately below this is a drawing of an entire picture [[Raster scan|raster]], showing that there are 512 (2<sup>9</sup>) vertical lines in a complete picture. Immediately below this is a replica of the first picture on the record to permit the recipients to verify that they are decoding the signals correctly. A circle was used in this picture to ensure that the recipients use the correct ratio of horizontal to vertical height in picture reconstruction.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Barry|first=Ron|date=2017-09-05|title=How to decode the images on the Voyager Golden Record|url=https://boingboing.net/2017/09/05/how-to-decode-the-images-on-th.html|access-date=2021-01-22|website=Boing Boing|language=en-US}}</ref> Color images were represented by three images in sequence, one each for red, green, and blue components of the image. A color image of the spectrum of the sun was included for calibration purposes.

The drawing in the lower left-hand corner of the cover is the pulsar map previously sent as part of the plaques on Pioneers 10 and 11. It shows the location of the Solar System with respect to 14 [[pulsar]]s, whose precise periods are given. The drawing containing two circles in the lower right-hand corner is a drawing of the [[hydrogen atom]] in its two lowest states, with a connecting line and digit 1 to indicate that the time interval associated with the transition from one state to the other is to be used as the fundamental time scale, both for the time given on the cover and in the decoded pictures.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/golden-record/golden-record-cover |title=Voyager Record |website=Jet Propulsion Laboratory |publisher=NASA |access-date=May 26, 2010}}</ref>

==Manufacturing==
[[File:PIA17035 Mementos of Earth.jpg|thumb|Preparation for the record's packaging before the launch of ''[[Voyager 2]]'']]

Blank records were provided by the [[Pyral]] S.A. of [[Créteil]], France. [[Sony Music|CBS Records]] contracted the JVC Cutting Center in [[Boulder, Colorado]] to cut the [[Audio mastering|lacquer masters]] which were then sent to the James G. Lee record-processing center in [[Gardena, California]] to cut and gold-plate eight Voyager records. After the records were plated they were mounted in aluminum containers and delivered to JPL.<ref>{{cite web |title=Voyager & the Golden Record |date=29 October 2015 |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasa-jpl/sets/72157676187916186 |via=Flickr |publisher=NASA/JPL}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Voyager Interstellar Record Collection, 1976-1977 |url=https://pub-lib.jpl.nasa.gov/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-533/JPL151,%20Voyager%20Interstellar%20Record%20Collection,%20%201976-1977.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170131012624/https://pub-lib.jpl.nasa.gov/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-533/JPL151,%20Voyager%20Interstellar%20Record%20Collection,%20%201976-1977.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2017-01-31 |website=Jet Propulsion Laboratory |publisher=NASA}}</ref>

The record is a copper disk {{convert|12|in|cm}} in diameter plated first with nickel and then gold.<ref name="Voyager - Golden Record"/> The record's cover is [[Aluminium|aluminum]] and [[electroplating|electroplated]] upon it is an ultra-pure sample of the isotope [[uranium-238]]. Uranium-238 has a [[half-life]] of 4.468 billion years. It is possible (e.g., via [[Isotope-ratio mass spectrometry|mass spectrometry]]) that a civilization that encounters the record will be able to use the ratio of remaining uranium to the other elements to determine the age of the record.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/golden-record/making-of-the-golden-record/|title=Voyager - Making of the Golden Record|website=voyager.jpl.nasa.gov|language=en|access-date=2020-03-28}}</ref>

The records also had the inscription ''"To the makers of music – all worlds, all times"'' hand-etched on its surface. The inscription is located in the [[dead wax]] or "run-out groove", an area of the record between the label and playable surface. Since this was not in the original specifications, the record was initially rejected, to be replaced with a blank disc. Sagan later convinced the administrator to include the record as is.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/05/opinion/05ferris.html |title=The Mix Tape of the Gods |access-date=February 11, 2009 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |first=Timothy |last=Ferris |date=September 5, 2007}} The writer of the article claims to have made the inscription.</ref>

<gallery mode=packed heights=150px caption="Manufacturing at the James G. Lee Record Processing center in Gardena, California">
Voyager-phonograph-record-5-10-1977 30217463364 o.jpg|Phonograph record
Voyager-recording-session-6-29-77 30885251025 o.jpg|Recording section
Voyager-golden-record-etching-7-28-77 30812861006 o.jpg|Record etching
Voyager-golden-record-etching-7-28-77 30217512534 o.jpg|Record etching
Voyager golden record gold plating.jpg|Gold plating
Voyager-gold-record-gold-plating-8-23-77 30797169261 o.jpg|Gold plating
Voyager-golden-record-gold-plating-8-23-77 30217620534 o.jpg|Gold plating control
</gallery>

== Journey ==
[[File:Record is attached to Voyager 1.jpg|thumb|The golden record is attached to the spacecraft.]]
''[[Voyager 1]]'' was launched in 1977, passed the orbit of [[Pluto]] in 1990, and left the [[Solar System]] (in the sense of passing the [[Heliosphere|termination shock]]) in November 2004. It is now in the [[Kuiper belt]]. In about 40,000 years, it and ''[[Voyager 2]]'' will each come to within about 1.8 [[light-year]]s of two separate stars: ''Voyager 1'' will have approached star [[Gliese 445]], located in the constellation [[Camelopardalis]], and ''Voyager 2'' will have approached star [[Ross 248]], located in the constellation of [[Andromeda (constellation)|Andromeda]].

In May 2005, it was reported that ''Voyager 1'' had entered the [[heliosheath]],<ref name="NASA">{{cite web |url=http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/solarsystem/voyager_agu.html |title=Voyager Enters Solar System's Final Frontier |date=May 24, 2005 |publisher=NASA |access-date=February 3, 2020 |archive-date=May 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200516082547/https://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/solarsystem/voyager_agu.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> the region beyond the termination shock. The termination shock is where the solar wind, a thin stream of electrically charged gas blowing continuously outward from the Sun, is slowed by pressure from gas between the stars. At the termination shock, the solar wind slows abruptly from its average speed of {{convert|300|-|700|km/s|mph|abbr=on}} and becomes denser and hotter.

In March 2012, ''Voyager 1'' was over {{convert|17.9|e9km|e9mile|abbr=off|sp=us}} from the Sun and traveling at a speed of 3.6 [[Astronomical unit|AU]] per year (approximately {{convert|61000|km/h|abbr=on}}), while ''Voyager 2'' was over {{convert|14.7|e9km|e9mile|abbr=off|sp=us}} and moving at about 3.3 AU per year (approximately {{convert|56000|km/h|abbr=on}}).<ref>{{cite web |title=Voyager – The Interstellar Mission |url=http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/fastfacts.html |website=Jet Propulsion Laboratory |publisher=NASA |access-date=November 26, 2012}}</ref>

On September 12, 2013, NASA announced that ''Voyager 1'' had left the heliosheath and entered [[Outer space|interstellar space]],<ref name="Voyager 1 Interstellar Space">{{cite web |url=http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/voyager/voyager20130912.html |title=NASA Spacecraft Embarks on Historic Journey Into Interstellar Space |date=September 12, 2013 |publisher=NASA |access-date=November 30, 2015 |archive-date=June 11, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200611233345/https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/voyager/voyager20130912.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> although it still remains within the Sun's gravitational sphere of influence.

Of the eleven instruments carried on ''Voyager 1'', four were still operational and continued to send back data {{asof|2023|lc=y}}, and it was expected that at least one science instrument would remain operational through 2025 and that engineering data could be transmitted for several more years after that.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Voyager – Frequently Asked Questions |url=https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/frequently-asked-questions/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230813133216/https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/frequently-asked-questions/ |archive-date=August 13, 2023 |access-date=June 26, 2020 |website=voyager.jpl.nasa.gov |language=en}}</ref>

== Publications ==
Most of the images used on the record (reproduced in black and white), together with information about its compilation, can be found in the 1978 book ''Murmurs of Earth: The Voyager Interstellar Record'' by [[Carl Sagan]], [[Frank Drake|F. D. Drake]], [[Ann Druyan]], [[Timothy Ferris]], [[Jon Lomberg]], and [[Linda Salzman]].<ref name="Sagan, Carl 1978">{{cite book |last=Sagan |first=Carl |title=Murmurs of Earth |publisher=Random House |location=New York |year=1978 |isbn=0-394-41047-5}}</ref> A [[CD-ROM]] version was issued by Warner New Media in 1992.<ref>Sagan, Carl ''et al.'' (1992) ''Murmurs of Earth'' (computer file): ''The Voyager Interstellar Record''. Burbank: Warner New Media.</ref> Author Ann Druyan, who later married Carl Sagan, wrote about the Voyager Record in the epilogue of Sagan's final book ''[[Billions and Billions]]'' (1997).<ref>{{cite book |title=Billions and Billions: Thoughts on Life and Death at the Brink of the Millennium |last=Sagan |first=Carl |publisher=Random House |year=1997 |isbn=0-679-41160-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/billionsbillions00saga }}</ref>

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the record, Ozma Records launched a [[Kickstarter]] project to release the record contents in [[LP record|LP]] format as part of a box set also containing a hardcover book, turntable slipmat, and art print.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ozmarecords/voyager-golden-record-40th-anniversary-edition |title=Voyager Golden Record: 40th Anniversary Edition |publisher=Kickstarter |access-date=December 15, 2016}}</ref> The Kickstarter was successfully funded with over $1.4 million raised. Ozma Records then produced another edition of the three-disc LP vinyl record box set that also includes the audio content of the Golden Record, softcover book containing the images encoded on the record, images sent back by ''Voyager'', commentary from Ferris, art print, turntable slipmat, and a collector's box. This edition was released in February 2018 along with a 2xCD-Book edition.<ref>{{Cite web | url = https://pitchfork.com/news/nasas-voyager-golden-record-gets-new-vinyl-reissue/ | title = NASA's Voyager Golden Record Gets New Vinyl Reissue | first = Sam | last = Sodomsky | date = November 28, 2017 | access-date = November 28, 2017 | work = [[Pitchfork (magazine)|Pitchfork]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/11/27/nasa-launched-this-record-into-space-in-1977-now-you-can-own-your-own-copy/ | title = NASA launched this record into space in 1977. Now, you can own your own copy. | first= Travis | last = Andrews | date = November 28, 2017 | access-date = November 28, 2017 | newspaper = [[The Washington Post]] }}</ref> In January 2018, Ozma Records' ''Voyager Golden Record; 40th Anniversary Edition'' won a [[Grammy Award]] for best boxed or limited-edition package.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.space.com/39549-voyager-golden-record-reprint-wins-grammy.html| publisher=Space.com| title=Reprint of NASA's Golden Record Takes Home a Grammy| first=Calla| last=Cofield| date=January 31, 2018| access-date=April 13, 2018}}</ref>

== Track listing ==
{{main|Contents of the Voyager Golden Record}}
The track listing is as it appears on the 2017 edition released by Ozma Records.
;Disc one
{{Track listing
| all_writing =
| title1 = Greeting from [[Kurt Waldheim]], Secretary-General of the United Nations
| note1 =
| length1 = 0:44
| title2 = Greetings in 55 Languages
| note2 = by Various Artists
| length2 = 3:46
| title3 = United Nations Greetings/Whale Songs
| note3 = by Various Artists
| length3 = 4:04
| title4 = The Sounds of Earth
| note4 = by Various Artists
| length4 = 12:19
| title5 = [[BWV 1047|Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F Major, BWV 1047]]: I. Allegro
| note5 = by Munich Bach Orchestra/[[Karl Richter (conductor)|Karl Richter]]
| writer5 = [[Johann Sebastian Bach]]
| length5 = 4:44
| title6 = Ketawang: [[Puspawarna|Puspåwarnå]] (Kinds of Flowers)
| note6 = by Pura Paku Alaman Palace Orchestra/K.R.T. Wasitodipuro
| writer6 = [[Mangkunegara IV]]
| length6 = 4:47
| title7 = Cengunmé
| note7 = by Mahi musicians of Benin
| length7 = 2:11
| title8 = Alima Song
| note8 = by Mbuti of the Ituri Rainforest
| length8 = 1:01
| title9 = Barnumbirr (Morning Star) and Moikoi Song
| note9 = by [[Tom Djäwa]], Mudpo, and Waliparu, recorded by Sandra LeBrun Holmes
| length9 = 1:29
| title10 = El Cascabel
| note10 = by Antonio Maciel and Los Aguilillas with Mariachi México de Pepe Villa/Rafael Carrión
| writer10 = Lorenzo Barcelata
| length10 = 3:20
| title11 = [[Johnny B. Goode]]
| writer11 = [[Chuck Berry]]
| length11 = 2:41
| title12 = Mariuamangɨ
| note12 = by Pranis Pandang and Kumbui of the Nyaura Clan
| length12 = 1:25
| title13 = Sokaku-Reibo (Depicting the Cranes in Their Nest)
| note13 = [[Goro Yamaguchi]]
| length13 = 5:04
| title14 = [[BWV 1006|Partita for Violin Solo No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006]]: III. Gavotte en Rondeau
| note14 = by [[Arthur Grumiaux]]
| writer14 = [[Johann Sebastian Bach]]
| length14 = 2:58
| title15 = ''[[The Magic Flute]]'' (''Die Zauberflöte''), K. 620, Act II: [[Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen|Hell's Vengeance Boils in My Heart]]
| note15 = by [[Edda Moser]]/[[Bayerische Staatsoper|Bavarian State Opera]] Orchestra and Chorus/[[Wolfgang Sawallisch]]
| writer15 = [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart]]
| length15 = 3:00
| title16 = [[Chakrulo]]
| note16 = by [[Georgian State Merited Ensemble of Folk Song and Dance]] (Head: Anzor Kavsadze)
| length16 = 2:21
| total_length =
}}
;Disc two
{{Track listing
| all_writing = 
| title1 = Roncadoras and Drums
| note1 = by Musicians from Ancash
| length1 = 0:55
| title2 = Melancholy Blues
| note2 = by [[Louis Armstrong and His Hot Seven]]
| writer2 = Marty Bloom and [[Walter Melrose]]
| length2 = 3:06
| title3 = Muğam
| note3 = by [[Kamil Jalilov]]
| length3 = 2:35
| title4 = ''[[The Rite of Spring]]'' (''Le Sacre du Printemps''), Part II—The Sacrifice: VI. Sacrificial Dance (The Chosen One)
| note4 = by [[Columbia Symphony Orchestra]]/[[Igor Stravinsky]]
| writer4 = [[Igor Stravinsky]]
| length4 = 4:38
| title5 = ''[[The Well-Tempered Clavier]]'', Book II: [[BWV 870|Prelude and Fugue No. 1 in C Major, BWV 870]]
| note5 = by [[Glenn Gould]]
| writer5 = [[Johann Sebastian Bach]]
| length5 = 4:51
| title6 = [[Symphony No. 5 in C Minor]], Opus 67: I. Allegro Con Brio
| note6 = by [[Philharmonia Orchestra]]/[[Otto Klemperer]]
| writer6 = [[Ludwig van Beethoven]]
| length6 = 8:49
| title7 = [[Izlel e Delyu Haydutin]]
| note7 = by [[Valya Balkanska]]
| length7 = 5:04
| title8 = Navajo Night Chant, Yeibichai Dance
| note8 = Ambrose Roan Horse, Chester Roan, and Tom Roan
| length8 = 1:01
| title9 = The Fairie Round
| note9 = by [[Early Music Consort of London]]/[[David Munrow]]
| writer9 = [[Anthony Holborne]]
| length9 = 1:19
| title10 = Naranaratana Kookokoo (The Cry of the Megapode Bird)
| note10 = by Maniasinimae and Taumaetarau Chieftain Tribe of Oloha and Palasu'u Village Community
| length10 = 1:15
| title11 = Wedding Song
| note11 = by young girl from [[Huancavelica]], recorded by [[John Cohen (musician)|John Cohen]]<ref name =Gdn>{{cite news | url = https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/oct/14/john-cohen-obituary | title = John Cohen obituary: Film-maker, photographer, folk music revivalist and founder member of the New Lost City Ramblers | author = Russell, Tony | date = October 14, 2019 | access-date = September 29, 2020 |newspaper = The Guardian }}</ref>
| length11 = 0:42
| title12 = Liu Shui (Flowing Streams)
| note12 = by [[Guan Pinghu]]
| length12 = 7:36
| title13 = Bhairavi: Jaat Kahan Ho
| writer13 = [[Kesarbai Kerkar]]
| length13 = 3:34
| title14 = [[Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground]]
| writer14 = [[Blind Willie Johnson]]
| length14 = 3:32
| title15 = [[String Quartet No. 13 (Beethoven)|String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat Major]], Opus 130: V. Cavatina (Ludwig van Beethoven)
| note15 = by [[Budapest String Quartet]]
| writer15 = [[Ludwig van Beethoven]]
| length15 = 6:41
| total_length = 
}}

== See also ==
{{Portal|Astronomy|Biology|Space}}
* {{anl|Arecibo message}}
* {{anl|Communication with extraterrestrial intelligence|abbr=CETI}}
* {{anl|Pioneer plaque}}
* {{anl|Time capsule}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}
{{refbegin}}
* Originally based on public domain text from the [http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/goldenrec.html NASA website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170724214342/https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/goldenrec.html |date=2017-07-24 }}, where selected images and sounds from the record can be found.
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons and category}}
<!-- Please don't add more external links, except in exceptional cases. -->
* {{cite web |url=http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/goldenrec.html |title=The Golden Record |publisher=JPL/NASA}}
{{Voyager Golden Record}}
{{Interstellar messages}}
{{Voyager program}}
{{Carl Sagan}}
{{NASA space program}}

{{Authority control}}

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