Voyager 1 is again on-line! NASA’s most distant spacecraft returns information from all 4 devices

All proper, everybody — we will all breathe a sigh of reduction. NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft is absolutely operational as soon as extra, with all 4 science devices returning usable information to Earth.

The issues started in November 2023, when Voyager 1 misplaced its capacity to “communicate” with us. Extra particularly, it began sending to Earth unintelligible information as a substitute of its regular 0s and 1s of binary code. After all, Voyager 1 is 46 years previous — historical for a spacecraft — so it wasn’t totally a shock that its well being is likely to be waning. And that is to not point out that it is in totally uncharted interstellar territory, some 15 billion miles (24 billion kilometers) from Earth.

Voyager 1’s dogged group was decided to not solely determine what went unsuitable, but in addition to repair the issue. They usually’ve succeeded! Controllers recognized the place the problem was positioned: the flight information subsystem (FDS), used to “package deal” information to be despatched to Earth. Additional sleuthing revealed the precise chip inflicting the issue, which allowed them to discover a workaround. After the group relocated the code to a brand new location within the FDS, Voyager 1 lastly despatched again intelligible information on April 20, 2024 — however solely from two of its 4 science devices. Now, simply two months later, Voyager 1’s remaining two science devices are again up and operating, speaking successfully with mission management on Earth.

Even when Voyager 1 had gone darkish for good, nonetheless, the mission would nonetheless have been a wild success. After it launched in 1977, its main mission was to check Jupiter and Saturn — that was completed by 1980. (Its twin spacecraft, Voyager 2, went on to check Uranus and Neptune.) However Voyager 1 is on an unstoppable path. Persevering with its journey away from Earth, the spacecraft entered interstellar space in 2012, returning essential information about this mysterious realm.

Associated Tales:

— Voyager: 15 incredible images of our solar system (gallery)
— Scientists’ predictions for the long-term future of the Voyager Golden Records will blow your mind
— Ed Stone, who led NASA’s iconic Voyager venture for 50 years, dies at 88

Now that Voyager 1 is again on-line, the group will proceed to “contact up” the spacecraft to get it again in high kind, together with resynchronizing its timekeeping software program to execute instructions on the proper time, in addition to performing upkeep on the digital tape recorder that measures plasma waves. And hopefully, Voyager 1 could have an extended, comfortable life forward.