![]() Its bordering on a miracle that this mission was accomplished, especially when you learn that certain moments were executed with split-second accuracy, a fracture of a second more would have led to destruction, such as the moment where the probe was propelled between the atmosphere of Uranus and one of its moons. It achieved this with computer memory a tiny fraction of what can be found in a modern smart phone. In 2012 Voyager 1 became the first man-made object to leave our solar system and reach interstellar space, having orbited all four of the giant planets taking a series of incredible pictures of them and their moons. Especially when you remind yourself that this extremely complex, technical and frankly unprecedented undertaking was achieved using mid 70's technology. This window of opportunity was grabbed and NASA formulated the Voyager programme, with Voyager 1 navigating the first two giant planets and Voyager 2 following behind but adding the final two to its trajectory. At one point in the late 70's it became possible for this mission to be achievable, a time which occurs approximately once every 175 years where Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are aligned in such a way as to allow a space craft to travel between them using the gravity of one to propel it onto the next. ![]() These probes were tasked with two objectives - to explore the outer planets and to carry messages to other potential life forms deep into interstellar space. ![]() The Farthest is the story of the two Voyager space crafts which were launched way back in 1977. With all the horrors and depressing events going on currently in the world, it is refreshing to be reminded of a human endeavour that was wholly positive in outlook and execution. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |