Science Fiction: Message from 61 Cygni

Sixty-one Cygni is a rather ordinary, fifth-magnitude star in the northern sky; its chief distinction is a planet about ten times as big as Jupiter. No one knows precisely what the inhabitants of that planet look like. But one day in the year 1894, Cygnian scientists, hunched over their radios, heard the familiar static of space crowded into the background by an unfamiliar signal. The message was undecipherable, but its meaning, they decided, was clear. They were receiving greetings from Earth, that little planet in the solar system some 66 trillion miles...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!