Missy Elliott on Venus: NASA transmits first hip-hop song into space
Miss Elliott's hip-hop song "The Rain" was sent to Venus by NASA. It is the second song to be sent into space via the Deep Space Network.
Missy Elliott's song was sent via the DSS-13 satellite dish of the Deep Space Network.
(Image: NASA)
The US space agency NASA transmitted a message and the lyrics of the hip-hop song "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)" by hip-hop legend Missy Elliott to Venus via the Deep Space Network (DSN) on Friday. This was announced by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) on Monday. So far, only one other song has been sent into space via the DSN.
Missy Elliott's song traveled around 254 million kilometers to Venus. This is the artist's favorite planet. The signal took just under 14 minutes to do so. It was transmitted by the parabolic antenna of the Deep Space Station 13 (DSS-13). The 34-meter-diameter parabolic antenna is located in the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex of the DSN, which is located near Barstow in the US state of California. The nickname of the DSS-13 is also "Venus".
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"Both space exploration and Missy Elliott's art are about pushing boundaries," said Brittany Brown, Director of the Digital and Technology Division of the Office of Communications at NASA Headquarters in Washington. She came up with the idea for the project. "Missy is known for incorporating space-related stories and futuristic imagery in her music videos, so the opportunity to collaborate on something out of the ordinary is really fitting."
Missy Elliott enthusiastically embraced the idea, according to NASA. She also got to choose where the song was sent. She decided on her favorite planet, Venus.
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"I still can't believe I'm traveling with NASA on the Deep Space Network when "The Rain" (Supa Dupa Fly) becomes the first hip-hop song to be broadcast into space," Elliott said. "I chose Venus because it symbolizes strength, beauty and empowerment, and I'm so honored to have the opportunity to share my art and my message with the universe!"
So far, only the Beatles' song "Across the Universe" has been transmitted into space by NASA. The broadcast took place on the 40th anniversary of the recording of the song and on the 50th anniversary of the founding of NASA.
NASA's Venus missions
NASA itself is planning two missions to explore Venus. Both will use the DSN to send data back to Earth. In addition to the DAVINCI mission (Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging), this is the VERITAS mission (Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy). DAVINCI is scheduled to begin in 2029 at the earliest under the leadership of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greebelt, Maryland. VERITAS will then follow in 2031 at the earliest. A team at JPL is currently developing the Venus Synthetic Aperture Radar (VenSAR), a radar device for the space probe. JPL is also to lead this mission.
The Deep Space Network of NASA's Space Communications and Navigation Program (SCaN) has been in operation since 1963. It consists of three ground stations that are evenly spaced 120 degrees apart around the world. They are located in Goldstone in California, Madrid in Spain and Canberra in Australia.
(olb)
