Radio Waves
Radio waves have been on my mind this week. Yes, the invisible waves that carry energy and information through the air and space. This is a simple definition, and there are far more scientific explanations. Radio waves play a huge part in our daily lives. Our mobile phones, computers, and smart gadgets use Wi-Fi and cell signals, both forms of radio waves, to communicate.
Radio waves are created by an antenna, which emits radio waves that spread out through space, the transmitter. Another antenna at the receiving end picks up these waves, converting them back into electrical signals that can be turned into sound, images, or data, like music on a radio or a phone call on a cellphone.
Why is this on my mind?
We take for granted that these signals happen all around us. They help us communicate with the ones we love and allow us to get information. The speed at which we get communication and information is almost instant, but what if it wasn’t?
Two incidents that I have drawn and sketchnoted about before came back in the news this week: NASA’s Voyager 1 probe and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Voyager 1
Voyager 1 is a space probe launched by NASA on September 5, 1977, as part of the Voyager program to study the outer Solar System. Voyager 1 is the farthest spacecraft and human-made object from Earth. As of today, May 17, 2025, Voyager 1 is approximately 166.32239498 AU (24,868,094,780 kilometers or 15,460,627,710 miles) from Earth.
As you can imagine, it takes time for NASA to communicate with Voyager 1. NASA’s Deep Space Network enables the agency to communicate with all of its spacecraft, but its Canberra antenna is the only one with enough signal strength to send commands to the Voyager probes. It takes more than 23 hours for data to travel to Voyager 1 and another 23 hours back to Earth due to the sheer distance between the two.
NASA needed to pull off a risky mission to start up long dormant heaters in order to restart thrusters needed to extend the mission. If programming calculations were off, the result could cause an explosion on Voyager 1.
Can you imagine having to wait for almost two days to know if your message got through and worked? Oddly, this reminded me of being a creative person navigating the social media world. Sometimes it takes time to get feedback on your creative work that helps guide you forward.
Radio Free Europe and R.E.M.
Radio Free Europe (RFE), now known as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), is a U.S.-funded international broadcasting organization that provides news, analysis, and cultural programming in countries where independent media is either banned by the government or not fully developed. Its mission is to promote democratic values by offering accurate, uncensored news and open debate in regions where a free press is threatened or absent. (source: RFE/RL)
The Trump administration is claiming that RFE/RL is wasteful and promotes a liberal point of view and is trying to choke off their funding. Surely the irony is not lost on most people that the purpose of RFE/RL is to help spread democracy(since the Cold War), and it is trying to be silenced at this moment in time by a government that appears less democratic with each passing day.
The rock band R.E.M. released the song titled “Radio Free Europe” on their debut single in 1981. In 2009, the song was added to the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry.
In response to the news that the Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty organization was going to have their funding cut by the Trump administration, the band released a remixed version of the song on a five-song EP, with all vinyl record proceeds going to RFE/RL.
Be kind to yourself on your creative journey.
Here is my original ink pen sketch inspired by the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex transmitters.
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You have reached the end of the newsletter. Here is a video of R.E.M. performing Radio Free Europe on the Letterman Show in 1983.
Bonus video: Here is Michael Stipe and Mike Mills of R.E.M. talking about Radio Free Europe on World Press Freedom Day 2025.