The Voyager 2 Spacecraft is truly going were no man has gone before as it continues on an extended mission into interstellar space. The Voyager 2 spacecraft was launched back in 1977 and started a grand tour of the outer planets of our solar system after a two year trek to reach Jupiter.
This little spacecraft that could then performed flybys of Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Finally in 1989 it ended its mission to study our outer panets, and it began a voyage to leave our or solar system. Voyager 2 began an interstellar mission to study the Kuiper belt and the heliosphere.
Amazingly, after all these years of travel and billions of miles traveled (yes BILLIONS!), NASA is still able to communicate with Voyager 2. It take a message nearly 14 light hours to reach Voyager 2.
The spacecraft is using three radioisotope thermoelectric generators to provide power. These mightly little nuclear generators are expected to be able to provide power for another 9 or 10 years.
Earlier this month, JPL commanded the spacecraft to change to it backup thrusters to conserve energy to allow the slowly declining nuclear power source to provide enough power for its scientific intruments.
As we have all heard at one time or another, "They just do not build them like the used to!"
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