The city of Lexington, Kentucky, sent a laser message to the TRAPPIST-1 system in hopes of attracting tourists from other Earth-like planets.
The bitmap that is the core of the first tourism advertisement for outer space, along with an explanation of what the elements mean (VisitLEX)
The city of Lexington, Kentucky, sent a laser message to the TRAPPIST-1 system, ostensibly hoping to attract tourists from one of several Earth-like planets there. We’ll leave the judgment on this one to you, although some might suspect that the real goal is to attract visitors closer to home.
There is an ongoing debate about whether humanity should try to make contact with aliens, considering the risk of invasion should they become aware of our presence. Stephen Hawking was one of the proponents of this theory. Others, however, believe that aliens would do nothing worse to us than we do ourselves and that we should seek their help in developing advanced technology that does not harm our planet.
Lexington showcasing its traditional image and aspects of the high-tech hub it wishes to become. (VisitLEX)
Ahead of Christmas, tourism agency VisitLEX positioned a powerful laser beam at the Kentucky Horse Park and pointed it at the TRAPPIST-1 system, in the direction of the Aquarium. The laser pulse turns into an image that includes some prime numbers, perhaps because they think we invented lasers without knowing the prime numbers. The image also includes the periodic table with the elements essential for Earth life marked, diagrams of some of our favorite molecules, and an invitation to visit Lexington. All of this is packaged in a Bitmap, followed by scenes and music from the area.
The image resembles (or could be seen as a parody of) the one sent by the Arecibo Telescope in 1974. However, the Arecibo message was primarily a demonstration of our human capabilities. It was destined for the globular cluster M13. In the unlikely event that someone had received it, decoded it, and responded to it, the round trip would have taken 42,000 years. It would be a gamble to bet that humans would still be here to deal with the consequences.
TRAPPIST-1, on the other hand, is only 39 light-years away. The VisitLEX website shows a countdown of days and even minutes until the message reaches its destination. It’s likely that whoever (or whatever) is attracted to the message will take much longer to get here, but potentially the first reservations could be made in less than 80 years, which, as Dr. Robert Lodder of the University of Kentucky noted , it would be “in someone’s life”.
No one knows if any of the TRAPPIST-1 planets support life, let alone technological civilizations. However, there are 3-4 rocky planets in the habitable zone. Since the system is at least a billion years older than ours, there has been plenty of time for the evolution of aliens capable of space travel.
SETI scientists and linguists provide their own tongue-in-cheek commentary on why anyone traveling through space for decades or centuries should skip the more famous cities and make Lexington their first stop.
Lexington, Kentucky has proclaimed itself the “Horse Capital of the World.” When trying to attract visitors, he traditionally relies on equine, bourbon and bluegrass. Unsurprisingly, these are featured prominently on the related website, and there is a nod to each in the message itself.
On the other hand, the whole event could be a sign that the University of Kentucky is trying to broaden its image by introducing the Living Arts and Science Center and the Explorium children’s museum. Curiously, there is no mention of the fact that it is the resting place of the royal cocaine bear. Maybe they think aliens aren’t up to date on popular movies.
VisitLEX got FAA approval for the message, presumably because whoever checked the box assumed they would retire and die before experiencing any consequences.
“Lexington would be a great place to make initial contact,” Lodder said on the VisitLEX website. “You can land your spaceship here. You can see the Bluegrass. You might even be able to ride a horse, depending on how big you are.”
Links: nasa.gov – visitlex.com – lasclex.org – visitlex.com