NASA's Voyager 1 is a one-of-a-kind spacecraft as no other space probe has gone farther than it. The Voyager 1 was launched in 1977 to fly by Jupiter and Saturn and then cross into outer space in August 2012 to continue collecting data. Together with its sister, Voyager 2, the two spacecraft have been flying longer than any other spacecraft in history.
But like most machines, technical issues are inevitable, and fixing Voyager 1 while still in space was indeed a challenge. Science Times previously reported that NASA successfully fixed the spacecraft's AACS module and now continues with its mission.
Technical Issues on Voyager 1
The 45-year-old spacecraft was operating well and transmitting data back to Earth normally until mid-May when the board system of Voyager 1 responsible for keeping its antenna pointed at Earth known as the attitude articulation and control system (AACS) started sending jumbles of data, Inverse reported.
It is different from the usual reports about the health and status of the spacecraft. The data looked like it developed some electronic version of aphasia, which causes it to lose fluent speech. NASA explained in a statement that the data appeared to be randomly generated or does not reflect the good status of AACS.
Furthermore, Voyager 1 appeared to be in perfect shape despite its bizarre status report. The spacecraft's radio signal remained strong and steady and its science systems kept gathering and transmitting data. But what was wrong with the AACS is that it did not trip a fault protection system that should put Voyager 1 in a safe mood when a glitch happens.
Fortunately, NASA was able to diagnose the problem and revealed that the AACS had started sending data via an onboard computer that stopped operating a few years ago. Due to this, it corrupted outgoing data and NASA engineers had to send the command to the AAVS to use the correct computer when sending data back home.
Is Voyager 1 Going to the Oort Cloud?
Voyager 1 is currently more than 14.6 billion miles (23.5 billion kilometers) away from Earth. The 45-year-old spacecraft has been in the interstellar medium for several years after crossing the heliosphere where the collar winds meet the cold and dense interstellar medium, Oicanadian reports. The space probe has since sent valuable data back home, especially on how the heliosphere interacts with the interstellar winds.
The data led scientists to important discoveries, like the detection of a new type of electron burst in 2020. Nicola Fox, director of the heliophysics division at NASA headquarters, said that the information about the limit of the Sun's influence gives unprecedented insight into unchartered territory.
On the other hand, the space probe and its twin space probe Voyager 2 are still far from truly leaving the Solar System. The Oort cloud serves as the boundary between the Solar System and beyond where the Sun can no longer exert its gravitational influence.
Previous studies suggest that the Oort cloud is about 1,000 astronomical units (AU) from the Sun and extends to 100,000 AU. That means it could take 300 years for bother Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 to reach the inner edge of the asteroid cloud and another 30,000 years to cross it.
Nonetheless, the two spacecraft have already exceeded expectations and have traveled beyond their original destination. They were originally intended to be used for five years, and now their lifespan almost increased tenfold. Despite being equipped with technologies superior to what they had at the time of their launches, there is still a slim chance for them to reach the Oort cloud.
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