Engineers at NASA have recently sent a “poke” to the Voyager 1 probe in an effort to address a communication issue that has persisted for five months. Despite being the farthest spacecraft from Earth, located about 15 billion miles away, progress has been made in understanding and potentially resolving the problem.
Voyager 1, along with its twin Voyager 2, has been on a remarkable journey through interstellar space, with Voyager 2 traveling more than 12.6 billion miles from Earth. Originally designed to last just five years, both probes have defied expectations by operating for decades, offering valuable insights into the solar system and beyond.
The communication issue with Voyager 1 was first detected in November 2023, when the flight data system began sending a repeating pattern of code. The mission team has since been working diligently to troubleshoot the problem, attempting to restart the computer system and running different software sequences to pinpoint the issue.
Thanks to the Deep Space Network, the signal received from Voyager 1 was successfully decoded, shedding light on the flight data system’s memory. However, due to the immense distance between Earth and the spacecraft, it takes approximately 22.5 hours for commands to reach Voyager 1 and an additional 45 hours to receive a response.
Despite facing unexpected challenges over the years, both Voyager probes continue to push the boundaries of exploration while conserving power and extending their missions. The engineers and scientists behind these groundbreaking missions remain hopeful that Voyager 1 will soon resume its important work in the depths of space.
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