Traveling 2 trips in interstellar space

In terms of space exploration, nobody has yet defeated the Voyager missions. On October 5, NASA announced that its Voyager 2 aircraft was approaching the outer borders of our heliosphere and could soon enter interstellar space. The data shows that the probe detects more and more cosmic rays from space, indicating a slow leak of the sun's stellar bubble. If all goes as planned, the craft will follow the footsteps of Voyager 1 and will become the second human-made object to ever visit the interstellar medium.

Long haul Voyager

Voyager 2's mission has been long and arduous, to say the least. It has traveled about 17.7 billion kilometers of Earth since its launch in 1977 and has spent three decades crisscrossing space before finally reaching the outermost layer of our heliosphere, the massive bubble created by the wind solar energy that surrounds the Sun, its planets and regions far beyond their orbits.

Since she reached this remote area, called heliosheath, in 2007, researchers have been waiting patiently for it to pass through the heliopause, the threshold that separates the heliosphere and space interstellar. And, according to recent data, Voyager 2 begins to progress.

Signals of space

In August, researchers found a 5% increase in cosmic rays detected by the cosmic ray subsystem of the craft, as well as its low-energy particle instrument. Consisting mainly of protons, electrons and atomic nuclei, cosmic rays pass through space at a speed close to that of light and are supposed to be ejected during powerful supernova explosions.

It is thought that the heliosphere prevents many of these rays from reaching our solar system, but as you get closer to the edge and the barrier begins to clear, more and more cosmic rays become detectable. Increased measurements of Voyager 2 suggest that it is close to the heliopause and may soon enter the interstellar medium.

And if we go out of history, the craft could cross the threshold from one day to another. In 2012, Voyager 1 had experienced a similar increase in cosmic rays about three months before its passage through the heliopause, becoming the first device to invade interstellar space. It should be noted, however, that Voyager 1 entered the heliopause at a different location, which could lead to differences in cosmic ray measurements and time of entry. Voyager 2 is also six years behind its counterpart, so it will probably cross a different point in the eleven-year cycle of the sun. This cycle causes variations in solar flares, solar flares and winds, which causes the expansion and contraction of the heliopause.

The cosmic ray measurements do not accurately locate the Voyager 2 or tell us exactly when it will cross, but the increased detections indicate that it is gaining speed with the heliopause and that 39, it could soon become the second gear to enter the interstellar. way.

This article originally appeared on discovermagazine.com.