Hercules Cluster (Messier 13)
In 1974 a binary coded message was sent to M13 containing information about humanity. It looks like a pretty obvious place to aim for, given the huge density of stars. And most stars are believed to have planets. The message will take at least 25,000 years to arrive. I think this was more of a gesture than a serious attempt to make contact, but that’s no reason not to do it.
What would the skies look like from within the cluster? Pretty amazing I think.
Total exposure: 2hrs 21mins using three-minute subframes with RGB filters.
Here is the message that was sent. The idea is that any advanced civilisation should be able to figure it out. The antenna dish at the bottom represents the giant 305m Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico that sent the message. Sadly this collapsed and was destroyed a few years ago.
