At Flinders University, I teach the archaeology of both ancient and modern societies – including space exploration. Most of my articles for The Conversation are about space, whether it’s the heritage of space junk in Earth orbit, poems about the Moon, or the Voyager spacecraft, launched in 1977 with their iconic Golden Records capturing the music and sounds of daily life on Earth.

Recently I went to visit my mother Tish, who lives in a tiny country town. She usually reads The Conversation while sipping her morning coffee. On this day I set up a temporary desk in her dining room to work on an article about the theories of an early 20th century Russian space scientist. While my brain was in the asteroid belt, Tish called out to ask if I’d seen an article just published about Australian archaeology. In that moment our conversation crossed rooms, centuries, and worlds.

This, for me, exemplifies how The Conversation has become woven into the fabric of everyday life. It’s become my preferred way to engage with the news. Sometimes I contribute myself, with the expert guidance of my editors. Whether as readers or writers, many contributions help keep The Conversation vibrant and relevant. But it does take financial resources too, so as you read today’s newsletter, please consider a donation. We need a strong, independent news source more than ever.

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