Space News

The Voyager 1 and 2 satellites were launched in 1977 to study and understand the giant planets of our
Solar System. It provided the first and only measurements yet around the two ice giants - Uranus and Neptune. However, the mission didn't end after that. The two satellites are still operating far beyond the giant planets in interstellar space.

The interstellar space starts where the Sun can no longer affect the surroundings. Voyager 1 entered this region in August 2012 while Voyager 2's entry was in November 2018. Their present distances from Earth are about 23 and 19 billion kms respectively. But a few days ago, NASA lost communication with Voyager 2 due to a shift in antenna. Hopefully, they can get it back by October when the satellite next resets itself for orientation. The mission also has a twitter account to keep us updated about news beyond the Solar System.

Lastly, we leave you with an interesting image from Voyager 1 taken at a distance of about 6 billion kms (from the Sun) called 'The Pale Blue Dot'. Try to find the Earth here. Hint: Look at the bright scattered light near the right of the image. It shows just how unimportant we are in the vast expanse of the universe. A reminder to not take ourselves and others too seriously! 

Images Credit: NASA