Pioneer Voyager 1 Back in Communication, Heading to Obscure Star
NASA Repairs Restore Engineering Updates from Distant Craft
Voyager 1 to Travel Billions More Miles Before Power Depletion in 2025
The pioneering Voyager 1 deep-space probe has once again resumed sending usable engineering updates back to Earth after five months of repairs NASA officials announced on April 22, according to UPI.
The 45-year-old Voyager 1 and its twin Voyager 2 spacecraft were launched in 1977 to study the outer planets. Voyager 1 was the first spacecraft to reach interstellar space, the region beyond the influence of the sun's magnetic field, in 2012. Voyager 2 followed in 2018.
Both Voyager probes are now more than 15 billion miles (24 billion kilometers) from Earth and are running on dwindling power. NASA expects Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 to run out of power officially ending their decadeslong missions sometime in the mid-2020s, according to UPI.
Voyager 1 will leave the solar system aiming toward the constellation Ophiuchus. In the year 40272 AD, Voyager 1 will come within 17 light years of an obscure star in the constellation.
On March 1, engineers sent a command up to Voyager 1 more than 15 billion miles (24 billion kilometers) away from Earth to gently prompt one of the spacecrafts.
NASA engineers believe the issue was caused by a problem with the spacecraft's attitude articulation and control system (AACS), which is responsible for keeping the spacecraft pointed in the right direction. The AACS is critical for Voyager 1 to maintain its high-gain antenna pointed at Earth so it can transmit data back home.
The successful repair of Voyager 1 is a testament to the ingenuity of NASA engineers and the resilience of the Voyager spacecraft. These spacecraft have been exploring the outer planets and beyond for decades, and they are still providing valuable data to scientists today.
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