Things "Changing Very Quickly" As Voyager Prepares To Leave Solar System
The journey of NASA‘s Voyager 1 spacecraft towards interstellar space continued over the weekend, and officials with the US space agency continue to monitor the 35-year-old probe’s progress as it grows ever closer to becoming the first man-made instrument to ever leave the solar system.
As redOrbit.com’s own Lawrence LeBlond reported last week, it is difficult to know when the vehicle, which is currently 11 billion miles from the Sun, will cross the threshold of our solar system, experts have predicted that it is very close.
It is currently travelling at speeds of eight miles per second, and is being closely tailed by its sister spacecraft, Voyager 2, which is some 9 million miles from home, according to Telegraph Science Correspondent Richard Gray.
“It is very exciting right now — things are changing very quickly at the moment,” Dr. Ed Stone, former director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and chief Voyager project scientist, told Gray on Sunday. “This has been a great journey. Voyager has already given us a new view of the solar system and we are continuing to discover a great many new things.”
“This is what science is all about — observing nature in a new way. This is also exploration, so we really don’t know much about what to expect. We don’t know what is in interstellar space because it can’t get inside our solar system,” he added. “The first man-made object launched from earth to cross into interstellar space will be a historic moment. It will be a totally new realm and is the latest frontier for the Voyager spacecraft.”
Currently, Gray said, Voyager 1 is so far away from the sun that the temperatures are 1/10,000th of those on Earth, and the planet itself is just barely visible from the craft’s location. There are 10 individuals monitoring Voyager 1 at any time, he explained, and 20 others who work part time on the data received from the probe.
At this point in its journey, NASA officials can only communicate with the spacecraft via radio, and the messages take approximately 17 hours to travel back and forth between sender and receiver.
Voyager 1 is also carrying technological equipment that was state of the art back in the 1970s, including a computer with less than 100,000th the amount of memory of an 8 gb iPod Nano, and an eight-track tape recorder.
“Scientists, attempting to preserve power, shut off Voyager 1’s camera after it passed Neptune in 1989,” LeBlond said. “The spacecraft, if it continues to function normally, will start shutting down other onboard instruments after 2020 to further preserve power. If all goes as planned, Voyagers 1 and 2 should continue to race through the cosmos for another 13 years before exhausting their power supply.”
redOrbit.com
offers Science, Space, Technology, Health news, videos, images and
reference information. For the latest science news, space news,
technology news, health news visit redOrbit.com frequently. Learn
something new every day.\”
Source:
Anyone can join.
Anyone can contribute.
Anyone can become informed about their world.
"United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.
Before It’s News® is a community of individuals who report on what’s going on around them, from all around the world. Anyone can join. Anyone can contribute. Anyone can become informed about their world. "United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.
LION'S MANE PRODUCT
Try Our Lion’s Mane WHOLE MIND Nootropic Blend 60 Capsules
Mushrooms are having a moment. One fabulous fungus in particular, lion’s mane, may help improve memory, depression and anxiety symptoms. They are also an excellent source of nutrients that show promise as a therapy for dementia, and other neurodegenerative diseases. If you’re living with anxiety or depression, you may be curious about all the therapy options out there — including the natural ones.Our Lion’s Mane WHOLE MIND Nootropic Blend has been formulated to utilize the potency of Lion’s mane but also include the benefits of four other Highly Beneficial Mushrooms. Synergistically, they work together to Build your health through improving cognitive function and immunity regardless of your age. Our Nootropic not only improves your Cognitive Function and Activates your Immune System, but it benefits growth of Essential Gut Flora, further enhancing your Vitality.
Our Formula includes: Lion’s Mane Mushrooms which Increase Brain Power through nerve growth, lessen anxiety, reduce depression, and improve concentration. Its an excellent adaptogen, promotes sleep and improves immunity. Shiitake Mushrooms which Fight cancer cells and infectious disease, boost the immune system, promotes brain function, and serves as a source of B vitamins. Maitake Mushrooms which regulate blood sugar levels of diabetics, reduce hypertension and boosts the immune system. Reishi Mushrooms which Fight inflammation, liver disease, fatigue, tumor growth and cancer. They Improve skin disorders and soothes digestive problems, stomach ulcers and leaky gut syndrome. Chaga Mushrooms which have anti-aging effects, boost immune function, improve stamina and athletic performance, even act as a natural aphrodisiac, fighting diabetes and improving liver function. Try Our Lion’s Mane WHOLE MIND Nootropic Blend 60 Capsules Today. Be 100% Satisfied or Receive a Full Money Back Guarantee. Order Yours Today by Following This Link.
| Visits: | 1,708,481,952 |
| Stories: | 8,450,474 |
Whistler Blowers, Insiders
The article stated Voyager 1:
“which is currently 11 billion miles from the Sun”
-and also-
“Voyager 2, which is some 9 million miles from home”
That means Voyager 1 is over 1000 times further away
than Voyager 2 is?
I hope William Shatner stays alive until it returns or were screwed.
Amen to that. lol
“Currently, Gray said, Voyager 1 is so far away from the sun that the temperatures are 1/10,000th of those on Earth, and the planet itself is just barely visible from the craft’s location.”
There is temperature in a vacuum? Hmm I thought there was an absence of temp since there are no molecules in which to conduct the heat!????
Guess my understanding of space was wrong…..