NASA plans to reach exoplanet 4.2 light-years away using Earth's 'singing' trees; know how

The Space Song Foundation, along with scientists from NASA, is working on a project where trees on Earth will sing a “song” in tandem with a spacecraft installed in Low-Earth orbit (LEO). It might sound like a plot from a science fiction movie, but the idea that will transform into the first public art/science project is being seriously pursued. Named ‘The Tree of Life’, the project will connect trees on Earth and a spacecraft in outer space through a song that will be transmitted through radio waves. 

Here’s how the project will work

The so-called “song” of the trees is nothing but a compilation of long-term data sets that will be converted into sounds. These data sets will include factors such as a change in light, soil moisture, and temperature which the trees will experience in the next 200 years and transmit to the LEO spacecrafts. Whenever there will be a change in the aforementioned natural factors, a change in the tempo of the audio will be heard. The spacecrafts, on the other hand, will compose a sonification of their own, based on their experiences such as a change in energy, velocity, communication bandwidth, and then transmit it back to Earth, thus establishing a communication. The foundation in its description of the project says,

The numbers in these data sets are translated into sonic frequencies and communicated between the trees and spacecraft via radio so that ultimately, the trees and spacecraft sing a duet for 200 years. 

Purpose of the project

According to the Space Song Foundation, the project is motivated by an idea to design a spacecraft that can take humans to the exoplanet Proxima B, which is located 4.2 light-years away from Earth. To make such long-distance travel feasible, humans first need to develop a spacecraft that can last for centuries along with a long-term terrestrial communication systems that can receive data hundreds of years from now. The foundation further states,

The Tree of Life is a demonstration of a spacecraft that lasts long enough to travel to Proxima B, and it is a demonstration of an organic communication system that can send and receive communication for the long term.

These trees have been made a part of the project as the scientists aim to establish large and living antennas on Earth. Interestingly, advanced concept manager at NASA’s JPL Innovation Lab, Steve Matousek, has stated that they will start testing the technology on a CubeSat starting next year, as per CNET, and the first two “singing” trees will be planted in Los Angeles and New York.

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