Voyager 1, So Close To Interstellar Space That We Can Taste It! 271
mphall21 writes "Voyager 1 is nearing the edge of the 'magnetic highway' of our solar system and scientists believe this is the final area the space probe must cross before entering interstellar space. The Voyager team infers this region is still inside of our heliosphere because the direction of the magnetic field has not changed. The direction of this field is expected to change when Voyager goes into interstellar space. 'Although Voyager 1 still is inside the sun's environment, we now can taste what it's like on the outside because the particles are zipping in and out on this magnetic highway,' said Edward Stone, Voyager project scientist based at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena. 'We believe this is the last leg of our journey to interstellar space. Our best guess is it's likely just a few months to a couple years away. The new region isn't what we expected, but we've come to expect the unexpected from Voyager.' Moving at 10.5 miles per second, the space probe is the most distant man-made object from Earth. The space craft has been in operation for 35 years and receives regular commands and transmits data back to the Deep Space Network."
Re:For those of us alive when this was launched, (Score:5, Informative)
Well there is New Horizons.
Re:When does it become V-GER? (Score:2, Informative)
I seem to recall the Klingons destroying this thing in #5, though I don't recall if it showed the designation, I just assume it was Voyager 1. V-GER was Voyager 6, which doesn't exist and hasn't been launched (yet.)
Re:When does it become V-GER? (Score:3, Informative)
No, Klaa blew up one of the Pioneer probes. According to the script notes it was Pioneer 10. Of course, how that flew into Klingon space to begin with is beyond me, given how far they are supposed to be from us.
Re:When does it become V-GER? (Score:5, Informative)
AND the above is WHY we don't dream big anymore.
One of the greatest achievements of technology to talk about and all we can do is compare it to a tv show and outdated movie from almost decade ago. And this will happen every time we bring it up.
We deserve the future we get.
You're kidding, right?
Here from Wikipedia: [wikipedia.org]
Cultural influence of Star Trek
"Many scientists and engineers claim that their professional and life choices were influenced by Star Trek. The inventor of the first non-vehicular cell phone, Martin Cooper, states he was motivated to develop it from watching Star Trek."
or from The Guardian [guardian.co.uk]:
Star Trek technology: how 21st century scientists are making it so
"Many have been inspired by Star Trek to become scientists, and some are starting to make its gadgetry a reality"
I'm certain Star Trek was one of the top reasons many of the engineers at NASA became interested in engineering in the first place.
Re:Littering (Score:5, Informative)
Re:For those of us alive when this was launched, (Score:3, Informative)
Who looks back on Bush as enlightened? They didn't even invite him to the Republican national convention.
I was thinking the same thing. I work with lots of republicans and even those people don't have anything good to say about g dubya.
Re:For those of us alive when this was launched, (Score:2, Informative)
As for policies, Obama has sadly continued many of Bush's ridiculous policies, but let's consider what else he's done:
Near universal health care coverage is somehow bad?
Ending of Don't Ask Don't Tell?
Bin Laden is dead
Wall Street Reform
Iraq war ended
Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act for women's equality
Saved Auto industry
Increased auto fuel economy standards
Reformed student loans saving 10s of millions of dollars a year
New START treaty
the list goes on...
All while facing lockstep opposition by the GOP to many of the THEIR OWN IDEAS; simply because they didn't want Obama and the Dem's to get any credit for fixing the problems caused by Bush and the GOP Congress of the early 2000s.
Google the 'Do Nothing Congress' as coined by Truman. They passed 800 bills. This current Congress passed 200... And yet Obama *still* got lots of things done.
Opposition is one thing, the wholesale obstruction of anything by the GOP is a tragedy we won't know the full effect of for a while.