Voyager 1, a NASA spacecraft launched in 1977, is back in operation after experiencing a technical issue that caused it to send back nonsensical data since November 2023. The probe is currently 15 billion miles away from Earth.
Despite being designed for a five-year mission, Voyager 1 has defied expectations and continues to explore deep space. Engineers were able to diagnose the problem remotely and implement a fix by rerouting code within the spacecraft's flight data subsystem. This is an impressive feat considering the probe's distance and the limited memory of its onboard computers.
The fix should allow Voyager 1 to resume sending scientific data back to Earth, providing valuable insights into the interstellar medium. The spacecraft's longevity is a testament to the ingenuity of the engineers who designed and built it and the dedication of the mission control team that has kept it operational for nearly half a century.
Voyager-1, positioned over 24 billion km (15 billion miles) away, is so remote that its radio signals require a staggering 22.5 hours to travel back to Earth.
According to NASA, during the coming weeks, the team will relocate and adjust the other affected portions of the FDS software. These include the portions that will start returning science data.
Voyager 2 continues to operate normally. Launched over 46 years ago, the twin Voyager spacecraft are the longest-running and most distant spacecraft in history. Before the start of their interstellar exploration, both probes flew by Saturn and Jupiter, and Voyager 2 flew by Uranus and Neptune.
Caltech in Pasadena, California, manages JPL for NASA.
