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    Voyager 1 Has Entered Cosmic Purgatory

    It only took 34 years, but NASA's deep space probe is finally entering uncharted territory on the far edges of our solar system, just before entering the rest of the Milky Way galaxy. The Guardian reports:

    Scientists at the US space agency said the craft had gone into a region at the edge of the solar system, describing it as "a kind of cosmic purgatory".

    Ed Stone, Voyager project scientist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, said: "Voyager tells us now that we're in a stagnation region in the outermost layer of the bubble around our solar system … We shouldn't have long to wait to find out what the space between stars is really like."

    When it does officially enter outer space, Voyager will become the first manmade object to leave our solar system, but that might take a little bit of time. The solar winds that have been pushing Voyager 1 along slow down in this area, reducing the flying time capsule's speed to a mere 11 miles-per-second (that's slow for space). At this rate, it'll take forever to travel the 600 light years to Earth's newly discovered, possibly life-supporting cousin, Kepler 22b.

     

    11 comments

    • Taber  •  Mobile, United States  •  5 mths ago
      Well we all know from Star Trek the motion picture, that Voyager, will crash on a machine planet where it is given new incrdible technology and will explore the entire universe before returning to earth and seeking its creator. For Gods sake NASA keep the old style radio frequencies open, cause v ger is a real #$%$
      • Pants 5 mths ago
        I always wondered if that was one of the events leading up to the Butlerian Jihad.
      • Anonymous 5 mths ago
        That was Voyager 6, not Voyager 1. Voyager 6 doesn't exist yet.
      • Taber 5 mths ago
        anonymous....it was actually voyager 1. It was attacked by a cosmic graffitti artist who thought it was funny to change the number! You really have to think these things through.
    • William  •  5 mths ago
      Voyager isn't slowing down because of reduced solar wind speeds; the solar wind has effectively nothing to do with the probe's speed. It is slowing down--marginally--due to the sun's gravitational pull. At this distance from the sun, however, the reduction in speed is no longer significant. The probe is covering about three astronomical units per year now, if I recall correctly.
      • Naomi 5 mths ago
        How can a gravitiational zone be stronger the farther you travel from its reaches?
      • William 5 mths ago
        The gravitational zone isn't stronger; the force decreases with the square of the distance. But the force acts all the time to reduce the probe's outward speed.
    • tomgreen99200  •  Miami, United States  •  5 mths ago
      Beyond cool!
    • blu stone  •  5 mths ago
      Maybe I watch too much tv, but lets hope it doesn't fall into the " hands " of someone, or something that will bring us ill will in the future .. And, yes, I've seen the Star Trek episode / movie that depicted something similar .. Still, in reality, we are VERY vulnerable, and defenseless .. But then, micro-wave ovens killed Cylons ;-)))))))
    • K  •  5 mths ago
      How many millions or billions was wasted for this ?
      • MichaelL 5 mths ago
        hmmm, let's see here - cost of war in Afghanistan 482 billion and climbing. Cost of war in Iraq, 806 billion and climbing. Cost of Voyager mission 860 million (or 1/1000 the cost of the Iraq War - which accomplished...nothing). Now how many lives have been lost in those two wars, and how many lives have been lost because of Voyager?
    • K  •  5 mths ago
      THAT IS WHY WE DO NOT NEED NASA
    • me  •  Atlanta, United States  •  5 mths ago
      It will reach that planet in a little over 10 million years..can't wait
      • Taber 5 mths ago
        It will go through a worm hole, so it will happen soon.
    • Naomi  •  Cullman, United States  •  5 mths ago
      Ok, what if it gets beyond the sun's reach and space is actually a different color... now that would be wild! Yeah, I doubt it, too... I just like to think outside the box
    • Naomi  •  Cullman, United States  •  5 mths ago
      I can remember learning and getting excited about this moment in school and have wondered about it over the 15-20 years. I can't wait to see what the data is like when it's completely out of the sun's influence!
    • O B  •  5 mths ago
      what a waste of money
    • Bob  •  San Diego, United States  •  5 mths ago
      This science marvel only the USA has the technology to make it happens all of us should be proud of. I remember the lauch of voyayers I & 2 back in the 1978 when I was still a 9th grader attending Torrey Pines High School in Del Mar Ca. USA #1
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