1000 BCE
Beacon, drum & smoke signals
Cultures worldwide relay messages over distance with fire beacons, talking drums and smoke. Source — Wikipedia:
Chronological Storyline (11 Milestones)
1792 CE
Chappe’s optical telegraph
Claude Chappe’s semaphore towers relay messages across France faster than any rider. Source — Wikipedia:
1844 CE
Electric telegraph & Morse code
Samuel Morse’s telegraph and code send text instantly along wires, shrinking distance. Source — Wikipedia:
1866 CE
Transatlantic telegraph cable
A working cable links Europe and North America, enabling near-instant intercontinental messaging. Source — Wikipedia:
1876 CE
Bell’s telephone
Alexander Graham Bell patents the telephone, carrying the human voice over wires. Source — Wikipedia:
1895 CE
Bose & Marconi’s wireless
Jagadish Chandra Bose demonstrates microwave signalling; Marconi achieves long-range radio telegraphy. Source — Wikipedia:
1927 CE
Television
Philo Farnsworth and others transmit moving images electronically, founding broadcast television. Source — Wikipedia:
1962 CE
Telstar communications satellite
Telstar relays the first live transatlantic television, opening the satellite-communications age. Source — Wikipedia:
1966 CE
Kao’s optical fibre
Charles Kao shows glass fibres can carry light-borne data over long distances (Nobel, 2009). Source — Wikipedia:
1990 CE
GPS & global satellite constellations
Dense satellite constellations deliver worldwide positioning, timing and broadband signalling. Source — Wikipedia:
2016 CE
Quantum communication satellite
China’s Micius satellite demonstrates quantum-encrypted communication over thousands of kilometres. Source — Wikipedia: