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Voyager

ca Offline Grant Lamontagne

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Voyager
on: June 18, 2022, 08:35:49 PM
Probably not news to some who have been following it closer, but it looks like after 44 years the Voyager spacecraft are nearing the end.

https://futurism.com/voyager-space-probes-power-down-mission-nasa

Estimates are saying by 2025 they'll shut down for good, and considering the state of technology when they were built, and the absolute lack of maintenance, I have to say they must have been the absolute most amazing things mankind has ever built.

Think about it- for those of you that were alive then (I know many of you weren't around!) just remember that while we had color TV ot wasn't very good, the most advanced video games we had consisted of a dot and a line segment, cell phones weren't a thing, and since then we have seen the rise and fall of technological empires like VCR's (and Blockbuster!), cassettes, CD's and, dare I say, home computers.

Hell, the vintage Leatherman on your desk or your belt right now was still many years away, and despite having a lot less moving parts, it is still only warrantied for 25 years.  Voyager 1 and 2 have been going two decades longer than that!

I hope I live long enough for humanity to find a way to catch up to them before they collide with an alien ship and come back to Earth seeking vengeance!

It's hard to think of a single piece of equipment that has expanded our knowledge of the universe around us. 

So long Voyagers, and thanks for all the fish.

Def
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us Offline Barry Rowland

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Re: Voyager
Reply #1 on: June 18, 2022, 10:25:29 PM
I agree Def!  Considering the environment in which it's operated, it's a downright miracle.
Barry


scotland Offline Gareth

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Re: Voyager
Reply #2 on: June 18, 2022, 10:43:30 PM
Fantastically impressive barely starts to describe the achievements made by these machines.  :salute:
Be excellent to each other and always know where your towel is.


ca Offline Grant Lamontagne

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Re: Voyager
Reply #3 on: June 18, 2022, 11:41:43 PM
If ever there was a machine worthy of being put on a shelf next to the Gutenberg press, it's the Voyagers.

Def
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us Offline Aloha

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Re: Voyager
Reply #4 on: June 19, 2022, 03:27:27 PM
Helluva run thats for sure.   :salute:
Esse Quam Videri


ca Offline Grant Lamontagne

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Re: Voyager
Reply #5 on: June 19, 2022, 10:02:58 PM
Helluva run thats for sure.   :salute:.

How many of us have any machinery that old, that still functions, and has never required maintenance?

Def
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gb Offline Craig

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Re: Voyager
Reply #6 on: June 19, 2022, 11:30:28 PM
I teach Science and when I students have been amazed and delighted to hear about spacecraft that have been traveling since 1978.
Prone to daydreaming.


ph Offline Zephon

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Re: Voyager
Reply #7 on: June 20, 2022, 04:24:44 AM
As long as it doesn’t return to us like something out of the Star Trek movies, I bid it a fond farewell and Godspeed!


 

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