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This graph shows the position of the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 probes in relation to the heliosphere, a protective bubble created by the sun that extends far beyond the orbit of Pluto. The Voyager 1 passed through the heliopause, or the edge of the heliosphere, in 2012. The Voyager 2 is still in the heliosheath, or the outermost part of the heliosphere. (NASA / JPL-Caltech)
- Signals indicate that the NASA spacecraft could approach the edge of the heliosphere.
- Voyager 2 and Voyager 1 were launched in 1977.
- Voyager 1 left the heliosphere in 2012.
Voyager 1 spacecraft may soon have company in interstellar space.
Voyager 2 has detected an increase in cosmic rays coming from outside our solar system, NASA has announced. This could indicate that the probe, which was launched 41 years ago, is approaching the edge of the heliosphere, a giant bubble that surrounds the sun and the planets.
When Voyager 2 leaves the solar system, it will become the second human-made object to enter interstellar space, NASA said.
Its twin probe, Voyager 1, arrived for the first time in 2012 after detecting a similar increase in cosmic rays. Voyager 2 is nearly 11 billion kilometers from Earth.
The Voyager twin spacecraft has been in operation for more than 41 years. (NASA / JPL-Caltech)
The latter and Voyager 1 were launched in 1977. Their main mission was to explore Jupiter and Saturn..
If the probes met extraterrestrials, each bore a gold-plated disc. containing images and sounds of the earth, including the song "Johnny B. Goode", written and performed by Chuck Berry.
Traveling longer than expected, Voyager 2 continued through the solar system to Uranus and Neptune.
The journey of Voyager 1 has removed it from the planets to interstellar space.
The main journalistic mission of the Weather Company is to report on weather, the environment and the importance of science in our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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