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NASA's Voyager 1 Sends Data After 5 Months, 15.1 Billion Miles Away

Apr 23, 2024, 10:30 AM

NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft, a 46-year-old probe that had been silent since November 2023, is now successfully transmitting usable engineering data back to Earth. This marks the first time in five months that the spacecraft has communicated effectively, following a period where it only sent unintelligible information. Launched in 1977, Voyager 1 is the farthest human-made object from Earth, currently located about 15.1 billion miles away. NASA engineers managed to restore communication by remotely repairing the spacecraft's systems, overcoming challenges associated with its advanced age and distance. The next step for the mission team is to enable Voyager 1 to resume sending back scientific data. The communication to Voyager 1 involves a 45-hour round trip.