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ONE LIGHT DAY AWAY // SYSTEM SPECIFICATION (PHASE 1)
Project URL: onelightdayaway.art
Submission Category: Digital Art, Interactive Systems & Social Sculpture
Status: Phase 1 Design Specification & Conceptual Framework (October 31, 2026)
Notice: Phase 1 documents design architecture, metric constraints, and ethical
protocols. Physical fabrication, mobile web interfaces, and public sessions
are planned for Phase 2 deployment in 2027.
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01. THE STORY & CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
In 1977, a NASA committee chaired by Carl Sagan selected the contents of the
Voyager Golden Record: 116 images (including one calibration frame), natural
sounds, spoken greetings in 55 languages, and music from diverse cultures and
eras, including three works by J.S. Bach. Once launched, that selected portrait
of Earth became fixed aboard the spacecraft; it could not be revised, expanded,
or opened to ongoing public contribution.
On November 18, 2026, according to NASA/JPL trajectory ephemerides, Voyager 1
is projected to reach an approximate distance of one light-day from Earth.
At that distance, a radio signal requires approximately 24 hours to travel from
Earth to the spacecraft, with another 24 hours required for a return reply.
"One Light Day Away" is an analog counter-monument and participatory score that
answers that immense distance with an immediate physical presence close at hand.
The project comprises:
1. An eight-bar metallophone console arranged so any participant can sound an
authored eight-note melodic motif from left to right without prior musical training;
2. An eight-frame adaptive movement score designed for inclusive execution
(performable standing, seated, or in adaptive care settings);
3. An unscripted civic voice recording protocol inviting everyday people to answer:
"Fifty years after 1977, what message, memory, or greeting do you offer the
universe today?"
Phase 1 registers the rules of a future public instrument; Phase 2 will place
it in people's hands. Fabrication, mobile interface prototyping, street activations,
and the public audio archive deploy across 2027, culminating on the 50th launch
anniversary of Voyager 1 on September 5, 2027.
02. PHYSICAL CONSOLE SPECIFICATION [PHASE 1 DESIGN TARGETS — NOT YET FABRICATED]
The physical console is an acoustic metallophone designed for unmediated public touch:
- Morphological Enclosure: The stepped casing profile is generated from the
relative bar lengths and nodal mounting geometry of the authored motif, while
accommodating ergonomic public durability.
- Fixed Authored Sequence: The eight tuned bars are mounted in a predetermined
melodic sequence. Striking sequentially from left to right sounds the authored
eight-note motif without requiring musical literacy.
- Nodal Isolation: Each bar is supported at calculated fundamental nodal zones
(nominally approximately 22.4% from each bar end) by two vertical locating pins
buffered with silicone damping grommets (40A Shore durometer candidate target)[cite: 2].
The mounting geometry is designed to reduce frame rattle while minimizing damping
of bar vibration, subject to empirical calibration during Phase 2 prototype testing[cite: 2].
- Milestone Index: Mounted flush to the deck is a circular gold-toned marker disc
inscribed:
1977 -------- 2027
03. SPECIFICATION & TARGETS TABLE [PHASE 1 TARGETS — SUBJECT TO PROTOTYPING]
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Component Candidate Specification Target Dimension / Qty
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Acoustic Soundbars Tuned metallophone alloy bars 8 bars; L: 140–260 mm,
(final alloy confirmed at build) W: 30–35 mm, T: 8–10 mm
Locating Pins Stainless steel supports 16 pins (2 per bar)
Damping Collars Silicone isolation grommets 16 units (1 per pin,
(40A Shore candidate target) calibrated at test)
Enclosure Chassis Stepped perimeter casing Est. 420 x 280 x 65 mm;
(6061-T6 aluminum or hardwood) Target weight: 3.5–4.5 kg
Performance Mallets Dual mallets, synthetic heads 2 units; L: 260–300 mm
with tether retention system
Technical Schematics Vector schematics (Inkscape) SVG / DXF / PDF drafts
Index Marker Engraved gold-toned brass disc Diameter: 60 mm; T: 2 mm
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04. THE 8-UNIT METRIC RULE: "FREE(E)DOM" // "ILOVEYOU"
The project applies a deliberate eight-unit metric constraint across text,
rhythm, and acoustic geometry. The eight-unit grid is a compositional constraint,
not a claim of linguistic or scientific equivalence:
[ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 6 ] [ 7 ] [ 8 ]
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I L O V E Y O U
F R E E (E) D O M
- Metric Parity: Standard "Freedom" contains 7 characters. Expanding the word
to "Free(e)dom" creates an intentional eight-unit design rule matching the eight
contiguous characters of "ILOVEYOU."
- Phonetic Duration: The parenthetical "e"—an added vocal elongation set to the
thematic melodic leap—serves as a written vocal score and expressive release.
05. THE OPTICAL SOUND LOGO & INTEGRITY EMBARGO [PHASE 2 PROTOTYPE]
The project identity functions as an abstract visual score:
- Physical Proportions: The eight stepped vertical strokes represent the relative
physical lengths of the console's tuned soundbars.
- Planned Browser Prototype: A planned Phase 2 browser prototype will investigate
optical recognition of the logo's proportional line heights and client-side
synthesis of the associated eight-note motif directly on mobile devices.
- Technical Integrity Reference (SHA-256): A SHA-256 hash of the digital master
score is recorded as a technical integrity reference[cite: 3]:
SHA-256: af61291c050dbb8e89ac56e9ebde3d819949164e83e2e7a46a68964434c36e9d[cite: 3]
Source File: one_light_day_away_master_score_20261031.mid[cite: 3]
This hash documents file integrity prior to publication[cite: 3]. It does not disclose
the score and does not itself establish authorship or legal priority; authorship
is documented through dated design records, copyright filings, and public
archival snapshots.
06. CIVIC PROTOCOL & ADAPTIVE KINETIC SCORE
Public interactions follow a three-part score designed for spatial safety in
crowded urban environments (adaptive design intent to be tested with participants,
including people with disabilities, in Phase 2):
Step 1: Acoustic Strike (The 8-note melodic motif sounded on the console)[cite: 4].
Step 2: Adaptive Kinetic Movement (Conducted within a compact personal footprint;
fully performable standing, seated, or in a wheelchair/bed)[cite: 4]:
[1] Frame 1 (Center): Palms together at sternum (Focus / Grounding)[cite: 4].
[2] Frame 2 (Heart): Right palm flat over left chest (Empathy)[cite: 4].
[3] Frame 3 (Breath): Both hands open flat over upper ribs (Breath)[cite: 4].
[4] Frame 4 (Horizontal): Forearms parallel at mid-torso (Equilibrium)[cite: 4].
[5] Frame 5 (Ascend): Hands raised to collarbone level (Signal)[cite: 4].
[6] Frame 6 (Reach): One arm extending forward within reach radius, hand below shoulder (Connection)[cite: 4].
[7] Frame 7 (Open): Both palms turned upward at waist height (Openness)[cite: 4].
[8] Frame 8 (Greeting): Hands joined at chin in traditional Southeast Asian Wai greeting (Respect)[cite: 4].
Step 3: Civic Voice Transmission[cite: 4]:
Participants record an unscripted spoken message replying to the prompt[cite: 4]:
"Fifty years after 1977, what unscripted message, memory, or greeting do you
offer the universe today?"[cite: 4]
07. ETHICAL ARCHIVING & PRIVACY PRINCIPLES
- Participant Protection: Audio and video transmissions are captured only with
verifiable on-camera affirmative consent, confirming understanding of the public
archival purpose. The protocol is designed to align with Thai PDPA and, where
applicable, GDPR principles. Phase 1 collects no recordings.
- Archival Use Only: Recordings are designated exclusively for cultural,
educational, and non-commercial archival purposes. No recordings will be sold,
licensed for commercial advertising, or monetized. Phase 1 involves no public
recruitment, sales, or admission fees.
- Data Retention and Withdrawal: Contributions are retained for long-term cultural,
educational, and non-commercial archival purposes. Participants retain the right
to request withdrawal or anonymization at any time by contacting the project data
steward at archive@onelightdayaway.art. Where technically feasible, identifiable
records will be removed or anonymized upon written request. Submissions from
minors will require counter-signed parental/guardian authorization.
- License Roadmap: The eight-note theme and scoring rules are planned for release
under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
(CC BY-NC 4.0) during the 2027 anniversary phase, subject to final review of
participant contributions and third-party rights.
08. EXECUTION ROADMAP
- 31 October 2026: Phase 1 Specification and System Architecture freeze for
the .ART Award 2026.
- 18 November 2026: Voyager 1 One-Light-Day Distance Threshold. Publication
of a dated astronomical reference note citing NASA/JPL public trajectory ephemerides.
- Q1–Q2 2027: Precision chassis fabrication, acoustic tuning calibration, and
development of the prototype mobile optical-synthesis web tool.
- 5 September 2027: Voyager 1 50th Launch Anniversary. Public street activations
and initial unsealing of the civic digital audio archive.
09. ARTIST IDENTITY & BIOGRAPHY
Stefan Grabinger is an independent cultural reporter, photographer, and multimedia
artist born in Munich, Germany, and based between Thailand and Europe. Raised in a
family shaped by classical music—his grandfather was an opera singer active in
Vienna, Berlin, and at the Bavarian State Opera—Grabinger’s formative environment
also brought him into personal contact with soprano Edda Moser and conductor Karl
Richter. Richter conducted the Munich Bach Orchestra in the first musical selection
on NASA’s 1977 Voyager Golden Record: the first movement of Bach’s Brandenburg
Concerto No. 2, while Moser performed the Queen of the Night aria. Over four decades,
Grabinger’s professional practice has spanned photojournalism, gallery direction
at Galerie G in Berlin, and contrapuntal keyboard studies. "One Light Day Away"
brings these strands together through analog acoustic instrumentation, rule-based
metric notation, and public acts of civic transmission.
10. AUTHORSHIP STATEMENT
All concept, composition, metric notation, physical console design, vector drawings,
and text specifications were created by the artist. Inkscape was used for vector
drafting. Generative AI was used strictly as an editorial reviewer for structural
critique and wording suggestions; it did not originate the artwork's creative content,
musical scoring, or visual design.
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