Competition launched to beam first advert into space
The advert will be beamed from the Svalbard EISCAT space centre
Friday, 07, Mar 2008 03:12
A competition has been launched today for people to create an advert that will be the first to be beamed into space.
People are being urged to design a 30-second television advert about life on Earth.
The winning entry will be broadcast from the EISCAT Space Centre in Svalbard, a group of islands lying in the Arctic Ocean, on June 12th.
Transmission will be directed at a solar system 42 light years away from Earth with planets that orbit its star 47 Ursae Majoris (Uma).
Scientists say this system is similar to ours and hosts a habitable zone that could potentially harbour small terrestrial planets and support life.
The advert will travel at the speed of light. Within 1.2 seconds the transmission will pass our moon, after four and a half minutes it will pass Mars.
After nine minutes the signal will beam past the Sun and five and a half hours later it will travel past Pluto and out of our solar system.
EISCAT Scientific Association director Professor Tony van Eyken said: "Space exploration and extra-terrestrial life is on everyone's radars.
"Recently, scientists have located two planets in a solar system very similar to Earth's, and the UK is launching back into the space race with plans for billions of pounds to be invested in space exploration. Communication with the universe is a natural extension in our world of open communication."
The competition is being run by Doritos as part their You Make It, We Play It broadcast project.