It's Official: Voyager 1 Is an Interstellar Probe 218
astroengine writes "After a 35-year, 11-billion mile journey, NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft left the solar system to become the first human-made object to reach interstellar space, new evidence from a team of scientists shows. 'It's kind of like landing on the moon. It's a milestone in history. Like all science, it's exploration. It's new knowledge,' long-time Voyager scientist Donald Gurnett, with the University of Iowa, told Discovery News. The first signs that the spacecraft had left the solar system's heliopause was a sudden drop in solar particles and a corresponding increase in cosmic rays in 2012, but this evidence alone wasn't conclusive. Through indirect means, scientist analyzing oscillations along the probe's 10-meter (33-foot) antennas were able to deduce that Voyager was traveling through a less dense medium — i.e. interstellar space." You can watch NASA's briefing on the probe's progress here.
Obligatory XKCD (Score:5, Funny)
http://xkcd.com/1189/
Congrats! (Score:4, Funny)
Thanks Obama! (Score:4, Funny)
We have plenty of our own problems here on Earth! Why is a government-built probe going into interstellar space? Is Obama trying to make health-care truly "universal"? I suppose if our own "illegal aliens" get free health care, why shouldn't Andromedans?
Keep alien overlords out of my health care!
Re:voyager has left the solar system. (Score:5, Funny)
They use the same math behind the Vista file copying progress bar to judge its distance.
Bark at the moon (Score:2, Funny)
Putin to America: You're Not Special [cnn.com]
I'm sorry, Mr. Putin. I can't hear you over the sound of our own awesome.
Re:Thanks Obama! (Score:5, Funny)
Woosh...
The sound of Voyager leaving the solar system..... over your head. :-)
Re:Obligatory XKCD (Score:5, Funny)
"No, we really mean it this time!"
Re:Bark at the moon (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Obligatory XKCD (Score:5, Funny)
In mothers voice, "Damn it Voyager, In or out make up your mind and close the damn door."
Dupe! (Score:5, Funny)
March 2013 [slashdot.org]
December 2011 [slashdot.org]
December 2010 [slashdot.org]
May 2005 [slashdot.org]
November 2003 [slashdot.org]
Is it too much to ask that the editors do their jobs and search for dupes before approving a submission?
Re:Obligatory XKCD (Score:4, Funny)
Fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again.
Re:Screw the Obligatory XKCD (Score:2, Funny)
Thank you for asking these questions in exactly the right place. I would like to offer you some answers to your questions. At first I tried to answer them from bottom to top, but I found out that each question has some relation to the previous one, so I did it top to bottom. My sincere excuses for the delay coming forth from my misconception. Again, this IS the best place to ask these questions! For your convenience I have put a 'Q' in front of your question, and an 'A' in front of the Answer.
Q> What *is* space exploration? When something like the humble Voyager 1 probe can continue giving usable data for such a long time, it should cause us to ask, why haven't our other missions been as successful?
A> Space exploration is the exploration of the stuff on the outside of the planet earth (or Gaia as some seaweed-cracker eating nutjobs call it)
Q> The Mars rovers are another example. [xkcd.com] When you consider the scale and complexity of their task, the rovers comparatively performed on par with Voyager 1.
A> This is not really a way to ask something, is it?
Q> You might say, "We can't plan for what it does after the mission is over, that's kind of the point of having a defined *mission plan*" and to that I say 'hogwash'
A> Again, this is not really a proper way to ask something, is it? Please leave your comments on wired.com
Q> It is my firm belief that humans should be taking vacations on Luna *now* and soon stepping foot on Mars. We could do it. Why aren't we?
A> The main reason that we do not go on holiday on the moon, or Luna as some amateurs prefer, is usually one of the following:
1 - no bars
2 - no beaches with ladies in swimming attire
3 - more importantly: no beaches with ladies in half their swimming attire.
4 - (if you are a reader of the Guardian) no museums
5 - you *constantly* have to remember where your towel is.
6 - Flip-flops fit really badly on these so-called moon-boots.
7 - any of the above
Q> NASA is a tool. Are we using it to its fullest?
A> NASA is an abbreviation, or more specifically it is an acronym, not a tool. A hammer is an example of a tool.
Hopefully I answered your questions fully and may I add that the answers provided here are conclusive. If you somehow feel in need of a second opinion from another
With kind regards,
The