The thrusters on NASA’s Voyager 1 just woke up after a 37-year nap in space
Ron Czapala
Posts: 2,418
http://bgr.com/2017/12/04/voyager-mission-thrusters-spark-to-live-after-37-years/
When NASA builds something, they build it to last. Voyager 1, which was launched way back in late 1977, has been cruising through space now for over 40 years, and it’s still impressing astronomers. The spacecraft, which is currently over 13 billion miles from Earth, moving at a speed of over 38,000 miles per hour, was recently asked to do something it hasn’t done in over 37 years, and it somehow managed to actually pull it off.
In order to continue communicating with its handlers here on Earth, Voyager 1 needed a slight adjustment. NASA knew it needed to tweak its orientation in order to allow the craft to send and receive information, but that’s much easier said than done, especially when the thrusters required to make that adjustment haven’t even been woken up in nearly four decades. Still, NASA had to at least try, and Voyager 1 was one indeed up for the challenge.
Comments
Those two probes have had an amazing run though. Even just the exercise in tracking and command over those distances is a wonder. Excellent work by all involved.
They certainly don't. We're lucky if anything lasts a year past the warranty period. My latest laptop is a perfect example. It's on it's fourth power supply and is only a couple of months more than 2 years old. It's not the supply itself, but the cable near the input barrel connector or the tiny little data pin that breaks.
Strange. I've had this laptop since November of 2009. Only had to replace the battery. (Which they refused to believe would happen.)
I still remember reading articles on the Voyager probe mission that took excellent photos of IO. Now that's a moon with a serious problem. However.... The big problem will be when the satellites decide to return home. And bill us for the trip.
It's not the laptop (Dell 7359) or power brick causing the failure (although the internal battery comes loose every 3-4 months), but the overly delicate original Dell barrel connector with that fine center pin for the PS ID.
With the aftermarket replacements it was the wire coming out of the overly long connector and adapter that would break. The latest one I purchased on ebay has a one piece right angle barrel connector that I think (hope) is a bit more rugged and reliable.
Making cables that are plugged and unplugged is not rocket science. The connector needs to survive being plugged/unplugged at least a couple of thousand times, and a strain relief section that spreads the wire flexing over an inch or more from where it exits the connector.
this is really cool. WOW.
Mike
Running out of fuel is nowhere near the end of life for these little spitfires. They have power generators that will last for a lot longer than the fuel. Also since there is nothing much to slow you down in space it will keep on going.
Interestingly enough, the total of the distance that it's traveled is less than the distance that light travels in 20 hours.
JPL has the mission status available as well as their eyes application that will let you see a 3D view of both Voyager probes, the solar system, and even the heliosphere. and the fact that Voyager 1 is on the business side of that barrier.
From the linked article:
"In order to continue communicating with its handlers here on Earth, Voyager 1 needed a slight adjustment. NASA knew it needed to tweak its orientation in order to allow the craft to send and receive information, "
I'm less than responsive after waking up from a 37 minute nap.
We might guess another reorientation is required in another 37 years time or so.
Do we know if there is enough fuel for the thrusters left to do that?
The article states that for orientation different thrusters where used and those thrusters are out of fuel now. The main thrusters used now where build for longer burn times like sling shooting around the planets while flying by. That happened 37 years ago for the last time.
This time they needed them to fire up for a very short time, just for orientation adjustment.
Mike
Rude, and they engines are not empty.
Enjoy!
Mike
Where does it say they are empty? It just says they used older thrusters. It does not say they are empty. I can read, and you are being quite rude.
I came here to enhance the thread, not to be insulted.
To that point, I just got off the phone with JPL. I have a phone call scheduled for Monday to get definitive answers to these questions.
I will share the results for anyone who wants to read them.