Voyager 1

Launched in 1977, NASA's Voyager 1 is the most distant human-made object, operating in interstellar space over 15 billion miles (25 billion km) from Earth. It continues to send data about the interstellar medium, having officially passed the heliopause in 2012. Powered by failing nuclear generators, it is expected to lose all power by the late 2020s or early 2030s.

Key Information About Voyager 1:

• Mission Status: Still active, though power limitations have forced the shutdown of most instruments.

• Location:

  In interstellar space, having passed the heliopause (edge of the sun's magnetic influence) in 2012

  .

• Distance: As of early 2026, it is over 172 AU (approx. 25.7 billion km) away.

• Major Discoveries: Discovered active volcanoes on Io (Jupiter's moon), Jupiter's rings, and several new moons for both Jupiter and Saturn.

• Communication: Signals take over 22.5 hours to travel from the probe to Earth.

Golden Record: Carries a 12-inch gold-plated copper disk with sounds, images, and music to portray Earth's culture to any potential extraterrestrial intelligence.

Voyager 1, along with its twin Voyager 2, continues to provide unprecedented data from outside our solar system, making them two of the most successful space exploration missions in history.

The Last Picture By Voyager 1

That Dot Is Earth

1 light day away

I keep thinking of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), wherein Voyager 1 was discovered by something [lore suggests the Borg homeworld, based on the descriptions given at the time]...

Me To