One could argue the pictures and symbols etched into the discs on the satellites Voyager 1 and Pioneer 10 are the most ambitious communication project ever conducted.  Its hard to think of another project where your audience is an unknown extra-terrestrial being and you are trying to communicate such large fundamental concepts through such limited and primitive means.

Pioneer Plaque

For some context the Pioneer Plaque was designed in 1971 and is 9” x 6”. Its estimated that the satellite and plaque are currently nine and half billion miles away from Earth.

Particularly interesting is the depiction of the man and women. According to Wikipedia the man and women were originally intended to be holding hands.  This however was determined to be not a good design decision because extra terrestrials could interpret the diagram as being one organism.  The right hand of the man is raised to show the opposable thumb ( a potent evolutionary design) and as a sign of goodwill.  I think a smile might have been an appropriate design decision here as well.  I wonder what the design process was like to determine what type of hair to depict, or if it should be included at all.  Part of me thinks although hair is a very unique physical attribute it could have been excluded. 

Behind the humans is a simple outline of the satellite that is appropriately scaled so an alien reader could determine the approximate height of a human being.

Towards the bottom of the plaque is a diagram describing the layout of the planets and the trajectory of the satellite.  An arrow is the visual element that communicates the direction the satellite is traveling.  Apparently there was some controversy over the use of an arrow, as this would only be able to be understood by humans.  I personally think an arrow is the easiest and most fundamental way to communicate directionality.  There is a kinetic quality to the arrow that I think would allow it to be properly understood by extra terrestrial life.

The Golden Record

The Golden Record is a phonograph disk made of gold and coppper attached to the Voyager satellites launched in 1977.  This disk contains not only images but sounds that describe the essence of human life and culture. This satellite is still able to communicate data and is approximately eleven billion miles from Earth.

The actual Golden Record.  Below are some images contained in the disk.

A diagram depicting conception.

A hauntingly beautiful silhouette of a fetus.  It seems on The Golden Record they wanted to communicate how our species reproduces. Looking at these images makes me again realize just how amazing this process is.

Since the disk contained images of humans, these diagrams could be more abstract. 

Reflecting on both the disk and the plaque its interesting to think there is a very real possibility these two objects could be the last remaining artifacts of the human race.  If that is the case I feel confident they will accurately tell our story.

References:

Wikipedia article on Voyager Satellite

Wikipdeia article on Pioneer Satellite

Nasa Voyager Mission Page