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Space TopicsVoyager
Together, Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 -- twin probes launched on September 5, 1977 and August 20, 1977 -- represent the most successful planetary exploration mission of all time. In their flybys of all the outer planets except Pluto, and dozens of other planetary bodies, the Voyagers set the benchmark in planetary exploration on an undertaking that has come to be deemed as one of NASA's greatest triumphs. Find out more about the stories behind the Voyager mission The two 1-ton spacecraft returned more knowledge-changing data than any mission before or since: stunning photographs that consistently revealed our solar system to be much more diverse, complex, and beautiful than anyone ever imagined, and a veritable bounty of scientific information to go along with them. On board each Voyager spacecraft is a time capsule: a 12-inch, gold-plated copper disk carrying spoken greetings in 55 languages from Earth's peoples, along with 115 images and myriad sounds representing our home planet. Even now, both Voyager spacecraft are still communicating with Earth. Many of their instruments are still functioning, as the two spacecraft head in different directions out of the solar system on their Interstellar Mission. Voyager 1 has now passed the termination shock, where the solar wind abruptly slows down as it pushes against the interstellar medium. Voyager 1 Facts Launch date: September 5, 1977 Jupiter flyby: March 5, 1979 Saturn flyby: November 12, 1980 Termination shock reached: December 17, 2004 Voyager 2 Facts Launch date: August 20, 1977 Jupiter flyby: July 9, 1979 Saturn flyby: August 26, 1981 Uranus flyby: January 24, 1986 Neptune flyby: August 25, 1989 Recent Headlines
31 Jan 12 Mars Exploration Rover Update: Opportunity Celebrates 8 and Keeps on Rockin' into Year 9
31 Dec 11 Mars Exploration Rover Update: Opportunity Climbs to Greeley Haven and We Look Back at 2011
30 Nov 11 Mars Exploration Rover Update: Opportunity Crunches Homestake and Scouts Locales for Winter
31 Oct 11 Mars Exploration Rover Update: Opportunity Heads for New Discovery as Winter Blows In at Cape York
30 Sep 11 Mars Exploration Rover Update: Opportunity Digs In at Endeavour, Team Remembers 9/11
01 Sep 11 Mars Exploration Rover Update: Opportunity Finds Martian Mystery at Endeavour Crater
31 Aug 11 Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Arrives at Endeavour Crater, Mission Begins Anew
30 Jun 11 Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Roves Back into Record Books, Spirit is Honored |
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