Voyager 2 may continue to send science back through interstellar space for some time.
NASA’s long-running Voyager 2 mission will postpone instrument shutdown by three years until 2026 thanks to a technical feat by engineers. The change will allow the mission, launched in 1977, to collect valuable science in deep space.
“We are certainly interested in keeping the science instruments operational for as long as possible,” Voyager project scientist Linda Spilker at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California said of the decision in a statement. (opens in new tab) Wednesday (April 26.)
Voyager 2 and its twin, Voyager 1, will thus continue to collect valuable data deeper into space than any probe before them. An ongoing investigation, NASA says (opens in new tab)These include probing the Sun’s magnetic field, solar wind energy from our Sun, and radio emissions in interstellar space.
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Voyagers are both powered by nuclear power, as the Sun’s rays are too weak for solar energy in deep space. The radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTG) they use decay over time, meaning that the plutonium produces a little less power each year.
Engineers have already turned off the heaters, along with other non-essential systems, to prioritize science for a stronger spacecraft. But power is now so low that Voyager 2’s five science instruments had to make tough decisions this year. (Voyager 1 only has four runs, due to a malfunction with an instrument early in its life, so it has enough power for all of them until 2024.)
Solving Voyager 2’s power problems came down to removing the protection normally available to prevent lightning surges from damaging the spacecraft’s equipment. That protection is called a voltage regulator. This regulator triggers a backup circuit that takes extra power from the RTG as extra protection in case of problems.
“Instead of reserving that power, the mission will now use it to keep science instruments operational,” NASA officials wrote in the statement. The decision will loosen voltage regulation on the spacecraft, but both Voyagers have experienced “relatively stable” power levels, “minimizing the need for a safety net.”
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Engineers will monitor the success of this strategy on Voyager 2. If all goes well, Voyager 1 will use the same technology as it begins to run down power next year, NASA officials said. They noted that everything has been working well on Voyager 2 for a few weeks with the new process.
“Variable voltage poses a risk to the instruments, but we’ve determined that it’s a small risk, and the alternative offers a big reward in being able to keep the science instruments running for longer periods of time,” Suzanne Dodd, Voyager’s project manager at JPL, said in a statement. The statement said.
Both voyagers were expected to stay in space for only four years and collect solar system science on Jupiter and Saturn. A mission extension in 1981 allowed Voyager 2 to finally fly past Uranus and Neptune, becoming the only spacecraft to do so to date. Voyager 1 was high above the plane of the Solar System after the Saturn flyby, but the expansion allowed the spacecraft to collect valuable solar data along its path.
Another mission expansion in the 1990s aimed to bring Voyagers into interstellar space. Voyager 1 entered that region in 2012, while the slower Voyager 2 achieved the milestone in 2018.
Elizabeth Howell is the co-author of “.Why am I tall? (opens in new tab)?” (ECW Press, 2022; with Canadian astronaut Dave Williams), a book about space medicine. Follow her on Twitter @howellspace (opens in new tab). Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom (opens in new tab) Or Facebook (opens in new tab).
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