The Compact Disc (CD) was launched commercially in 1982 by Philips and Sony, introducing the first mass-market digital audio format. Heralded by science outlets like ABC Science as a revolutionary step forward, the format promised superior, noise-free sound quality that rapidly overtook analog vinyl records and cassette tapes. Credit: ABC Science | History In Pictures

Fascinating video of what a CD looks like when magnified! 💿 Once zoomed in, it's easier to see the CD data represented as tiny indentations known as pits, encoded in a spiral track moulded into the top of the polycarbonate layer. The empty areas between pits are known as lands. The laser reading the disc interprets these pits and lands as 1's and 0's. 1's and 0's = digital data This data is processed and output to your speakers as digital audio perfection. 👍 Video source: @macrofying on Instag

Every CD holds its data as a continuous spiral of microscopic dents called pits, with flat areas known as lands in between. Each pit measures about one thousandth the width of a human hair. A CD player reads these by shining a laser onto the surface. Light reflects differently off pits and lands, and those tiny changes in brightness are converted into binary code. That is how sound, video, or files become readable data. Love technology? Follow @Technology Credits: @microscopie_44 #technology #sc