When did the Voyager program launch its two spacecraft?
Both Voyager spacecraft were launched in 1977. Voyager 2 lifted off first, followed by Voyager 1, which traveled on a shorter, faster trajectory designed to fly past Saturn's moon Titan.
Questions about Voyager program
Short answers, pulled from the story.
When did Voyager 1 enter interstellar space?
Voyager 1 crossed the heliopause and entered interstellar space on the 25th of August 2012. NASA announced this officially in September 2013, making it the first human-made object to reach interstellar space.
When did Voyager 2 enter interstellar space?
Voyager 2 crossed the heliopause on the 5th of November 2018. Scientists officially confirmed this on the 4th of November 2019, making Voyager 2 the second spacecraft ever to enter the interstellar medium.
What is the Voyager Golden Record?
The Voyager Golden Record is a 12-inch golden phonograph disc attached to each spacecraft. It contains pictures and sounds of Earth, symbolic playing instructions, and data identifying Earth's location. Carl Sagan chaired the committee that selected its contents.
Who originally conceived the Voyager program mission?
Gary Flandro, an aerospace engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, conceptualized the underlying Grand Tour mission in 1964. He recognized that a rare planetary alignment, occurring once every 175 years, would allow a spacecraft to visit all the outer planets using gravitational assists.
What is the Pale Blue Dot photograph taken by the Voyager program?
Pale Blue Dot is a photograph of Earth taken by Voyager 1 on the 14th of February 1990, from a distance of approximately 6 billion kilometers (about 40.5 AU). Carl Sagan popularized the image and wrote that it demonstrates "the folly of human conceits."