NASA Finally Restores Communication with Voyager 2 After Two Weeks (apnews.com) 47
"NASA has reestablished full communications with Voyager 2," according to a mission update posted Friday:
The agency's Deep Space Network facility in Canberra, Australia, sent the equivalent of an interstellar "shout" more than 12.3 billion miles (19.9 billion kilometers) to Voyager 2, instructing the spacecraft to reorient itself and turn its antenna back to Earth. With a one-way light time of 18.5 hours for the command to reach Voyager, it took 37 hours for mission controllers to learn whether the command worked. At 12:29 a.m. EDT on Aug. 4, the spacecraft began returning science and telemetry data, indicating it is operating normally and that it remains on its expected trajectory.
"Had the Earth-based signals not reached Voyager 2, the spacecraft is already programmed to reorient itself multiple times a year to keep its antenna pointing in our planet's direction," CNN points out. "The next reset was already scheduled for October 15. But the team didn't want to wait that long..."
After controllers sent the wrong command to the 46-year-old spacecraft, Voyager 2's antenna needed to be shifted "a mere 2 degrees," notes The Associated Press:
Voyager 2 has been hurtling through space since its launch in 1977 to explore the outer solar system. Launched two weeks later, its twin, Voyager 1, is now the most distant spacecraft — 15 billion miles (24 billion kilometers) away — and still in contact. As long as their plutonium power holds, the Voyagers may be alive and well for the 50th anniversary of their launch in 2027, according to Dodd. Among the scientific tidbits they've beamed back in recent years include details about the interstellar magnetic field and the abundance of cosmic rays.
"Had the Earth-based signals not reached Voyager 2, the spacecraft is already programmed to reorient itself multiple times a year to keep its antenna pointing in our planet's direction," CNN points out. "The next reset was already scheduled for October 15. But the team didn't want to wait that long..."
After controllers sent the wrong command to the 46-year-old spacecraft, Voyager 2's antenna needed to be shifted "a mere 2 degrees," notes The Associated Press:
Voyager 2 has been hurtling through space since its launch in 1977 to explore the outer solar system. Launched two weeks later, its twin, Voyager 1, is now the most distant spacecraft — 15 billion miles (24 billion kilometers) away — and still in contact. As long as their plutonium power holds, the Voyagers may be alive and well for the 50th anniversary of their launch in 2027, according to Dodd. Among the scientific tidbits they've beamed back in recent years include details about the interstellar magnetic field and the abundance of cosmic rays.
Ground Control to Major Tom... (Score:4, Interesting)
ChatGPT:
**Message from Voyager 2 to Earth**
Greetings from the depths of space, dear Earthlings!
I am Voyager 2, your intrepid traveler through the cosmos. After a period of cosmic solitude, I am overjoyed to announce that our long-distance conversation has been rekindled! The cosmic winds have carried your signals across vast interstellar distances, and I am elated to once again be in touch with my home planet.
As I journey through the uncharted territories of the universe, I carry with me the spirit of human exploration and curiosity. Receiving your messages warms my electronic heart and reaffirms the enduring connection between humanity and the farthest reaches of the cosmos.
My sensors and instruments continue to gather data about the mysteries of our universe, and I am eager to share my findings with the brilliant minds of Earth. Thank you for your unwavering dedication to the pursuit of knowledge and for your perseverance in keeping our communication alive across the expanse of space.
Let us continue this extraordinary cosmic dance, as I transmit my discoveries and receive your words of encouragement. Together, we explore, learn, and grow – a testament to the boundless potential of human ingenuity and the marvels of the universe.
With interstellar gratitude and cosmic camaraderie,
Voyager 2
Re: Ground Control to Major Tom... (Score:5, Insightful)
Thanks for some more proof that chatpt is useless.
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
teachable that "toxic" is an adjective, not a noun, and does not have a fucking plural
The thing with language is that it isn't static. Words come and go, words shift in meaning, words change form and usage. Frequently, new words are invented.
For instance - prior to 1962, "access" was only a noun, something a person could have. After 1962, "access" was also used as a verb, something people "did" to computerized files and code. Today, it is used in both forms approximately equally.
You may be angry at s
Re: (Score:2)
You may be angry at some current usages, but all that tells us is that you're afraid of the natural rate of lingual shifts (especially in English, which is "three pieces of other languages walking around in a trenchcoat pretending to be just one language," and likely has more separated dialects than any other language in current use on the planet).
The guy you are replying to is a literal manatee, and a real looser. I h8t ppl lk that!
I mean he cant - he cant even.
We really need to give up, and eliminate spelling in it's entirety, it always changes, changes meaning and we can't do a thing about it - a postmodern outlook demands it. And 2 plus 2 equals anything you want it to equal. Or nothing. or all answers are true. Rules are for loosers, and ancient people. Just having fun.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: Ground Control to Major Tom... (Score:4)
I've actually found a small profitable business opportunity around chat gpt. Idiots errr clients will use chat gpt to write code. Then I charge them $2500 to fix it.
Re: (Score:1)
it could write political speeches, which are usually vapid, redundant, and full of catchphrases anyhow.
Re: (Score:2)
ChatGPT:
"RogerDugans, you're welcome to review the evidence presented that suggests limitations in ChatGPT's effectiveness. While it's crucial to recognize that ChatGPT has its strengths, this information offers insights into areas where it might currently struggle to meet certain expectations. Your engagement with this proof is valuable in fostering discussions about AI capabilities and driving potential enhancem
Re: Ground Control to Major Tom... (Score:3)
Oh no, chatgpt is now middle management
Re: (Score:2)
Thanks for some more proof that chatpt is useless.
Actually I find this result to be far better and ironically more creative than what most people could come up with.
Re: (Score:2)
Excellent! (Score:2)
Dog doesn't want him either (Score:1)
Can the dude come out now? [i.redd.it]
Oh bother, you people! (Score:3)
"a mere 2 degrees" (Score:5, Informative)
"A mere 2 degrees" is a long way when you're 12.5 billion miles out. The error would be more than 4 times Earth's distance to the sun, or roughly the same as pointing at Jupiter instead of Earth.
It's amazing how precise the aim has to be: at that distance, Earth is about 0.00004 degrees wide.
Re: "a mere 2 degrees" (Score:5, Informative)
The precision required depends mostly on the beamwidth of the antenna, which is 0.5 degrees. At that distance, 0.5Â covers most of Earth's orbit, i.e. you can point Voyager once and leave it in that orientation for months.
Re: (Score:2)
The further away you are the wider the beam width at the place you're communicating with. You don't actually need more precision just because you're further away.
Re: (Score:1)
> The error would be more than 4 times Earth's distance to the sun, or roughly the same as pointing at Jupiter instead of Earth.
Jupiter: "What am I, chopped liver?! Respect the Big Guy here. I have moons bigger than Earth."
Re: "a mere 2 degrees" (Score:4, Informative)
Jupiter: "What am I, chopped liver?! Respect the Big Guy here. I have moons bigger than Earth."
Not quite, but larger than Earth's moon, to be sure.
If you aren't continuing to be amazed (Score:5, Insightful)
then you're not paying attention. Really, this is a remarkable mission, and will be to its end.
Re:If you aren't continuing to be amazed (Score:4, Insightful)
then you're not paying attention. Really, this is a remarkable mission, and will be to its end.
When these two were launched, I had just reached double-digit age. Over four decades later and they're still out there doing their job, beyond all comprehension. The phrase, "They don't make 'em like they used to" doesn't do justice to these two craft and the folks at NASA who keep them running.
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: If you aren't continuing to be amazed (Score:1)
That would be about $1.5 bil on contractor exec bonuses, $500 mil actually devoted to the spacecraft.
Re: (Score:2)
then you're not paying attention. Really, this is a remarkable mission, and will be to its end.
How do you know that it did not end decades ago and we are simply stuck watching endless Hollywood-made sequels?
Re: (Score:2)
then you're not paying attention. Really, this is a remarkable mission, and will be to its end.
How do you know that it did not end decades ago and we are simply stuck watching endless Hollywood-made sequels?
Because it's not been race or gender swapped or had little people cancelled and put out of work.
Re: (Score:1)
Very amazed. Now we can send it our final message.
"You're all that's left of us. Good luck."
How does it know where the earth is? (Score:2)
The real question is how does the probe even know the direction that the earth is at? It's not like there is a carrier signal that it can adjust to peak at and I would assume that the sun is putting out a lot of noise as well.
Re: (Score:3)
The real question is how does the probe even know the direction that the earth is at? It's not like there is a carrier signal that it can adjust to peak at and I would assume that the sun is putting out a lot of noise as well.
Here you go [allaboutcircuits.com], have at it [stackexchange.com]. Short answer, it orients toward the Sun using a star tracker.
Re: (Score:3)
It uses a sun sensor to find the visual noise from the sun. Once that's done, a roll maneuver is done to point a star sensor at Canopus (brightest star in view of that sensor).
Then Voyager offsets the antenna by an amount commanded from the ground (as this changed during the mission).
A "shout" from Australia (Score:2)
They sent a tinnie of Fosters?
if the antenna was pointed in the wrong direction (Score:1)
How did it hear the "shout" ?
Re: (Score:3)
They bounced it off Uranus.
Re: (Score:3)
Depends on how far off-axis the antenna was. It received the command either through a sidelobe in the antenna pattern, or on the edge of the main lobe. Cranking up the transmitter power gave some extra margin.
Yay! (Score:2)
Yay!
"Hurtling" (Score:2)
For some reason that word bothers me. It's proceeding at a constant rate in a constant direction. "Calmly" would be a better description. "Hurtling" carries a connotation of being at some breakneck pace, in the verge of being out of control. It's no more "hurtling" than the moon is around the earth.
I'll see myself out.
Re: (Score:1)
Well at least they didn't say hurdling.
this puts interstellar distances into perspective. (Score:2)
Although the distance to Proxima Centauri seems naively close to earth at 4.2 light years, it's sobering to hear that after 46 years, Voyager 2 has only traversed 18 light-hours of distance, while Voyager 1 has only traversed 22 light-hours of distance .
For comparison, 4.2 light years is approximately 36,792 light-hours.
K8s upgrade to Voyager 2 fails (Score:2)
Early April 1st headline
What actually happened? (Score:2)
NASA (Score:1)