Infinity and Beyond

Lily posted on Friday, February 15th, 2013 | PRX

This is a blogpost series by our intern Lily Bui. She writes about radio, technology, and more.

This week, both the unexpected meteor shower over Russia and the passing of asteroid 2012 DA14 have the world looking skyward. While most people are busy associating asteroids and meteorites with impending doom, radio is here to remind you of a more mystical, wondrous side to space. (Well, Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds broadcast might be a valid exception.)

Behold, PRX’s space playlist. (Cue the celestial music.)

Here, you’ll find musings about manned missions to Mars, stories about shuttles, and accounts of apes in space. The infinite possibility of what lays in the great unknown has stirred the imagination for eons. Space has inspired poets, puzzled philosophers, challenged mathematicians, fueled the work of engineers, and elicited quiet gasps from incidental stargazers.

If you think about it, radio has a unique relationship with space as well. Radio satellites orbiting earth continuously receive and send signals to earth so that you and I can listen to our favorite programs. Traces of the first-ever radio broadcast are still traveling deep into space. This video illustrates it beautifully:

The vastness of space serves as a constant reminder of how small we are in the grand scheme of things. Whether you interpret that as a notion to lament, ponder, or celebrate is up to you. For now, here’s hoping that these radio stories can provide solace from the apocalyptic headlines.