Overview

• The European Space Agency will broadcast Johann Strauss II's 'Blue Danube' into deep space on May 31 to honor the composer's 200th birthday and the agency's 50th anniversary.
• The Vienna Symphony Orchestra will perform the waltz live, while a pre-recorded rehearsal will be transmitted to ensure technical reliability.
• The transmission will originate from ESA's deep-space antenna in Spain, traveling at the speed of light and reaching Voyager 1, NASA's most distant spacecraft, in approximately 23 hours.
• The event addresses Strauss' omission from NASA's 1977 Voyager Golden Records, which featured other classical works but excluded the iconic waltz.
• Public livestream screenings of the performance will be held in Vienna, Madrid, and New York to engage global audiences in the celebration.