Latest news with #SuzanneDodd
Fox News
22-05-2025
- Science
- Fox News
NASA revives 'dead' thrusters on Voyager 1 after two decades of inactivity
NASA revived roll thrusters on the 47-year-old Voyager 1 that were thought to be dead for two decades. According to the space agency, scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA, located in Southern California, have reactivated a set of thrusters on the spacecraft. The roll thrusters have not worked since 2004 and are long believed to have been out of commission. These thrusters are important because Voyager's main thrusters appear to have some residue forming that could cause them to clog. Scientists estimate those thrusters could fail as early as Fall 2025. The antenna on Earth responsible for sending commands to both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 will be offline for several months. Deep Space Station 43, a 230-foot-wide antenna in Australia, will be offline until February 2026 due to needed upgrades. While that antenna is being upgraded, the team at NASA will not be able to communicate with the twin space probes. Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager and director of the Interplanetary Network at JPL, said these upgrades are important for future Moon missions. "These antenna upgrades are important for future crewed lunar landings, and they also increase communications capacity for our science missions in deep space, some of which are building on the discoveries Voyager made," Dodd said in a press release. Each Voyager has a set of primary thrusters that control movement in all directions as well as smaller thrusters for what is called roll control. Using the smaller thrusters allows the Voyager's antenna to stay aligned with Earth, so the scientists can communicate with it. While there is a third set of thrusters, which were brought back online in 2018 and 2019, Voyager does not have the capability to perform the roll adjustments needed to keep a connection with Earth. If Earth happened to lose connection with Voyager 1, it would be nearly impossible to restore communication. Voyager 1 was launched in 1977 and has traveled nearly 15 billion miles away and is currently exploring interstellar space, which is beyond our Solar System. Both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 have traveled farther than any other human-made objects. Voyager 1's notable discoveries include finding a thin ring around Jupiter, along with 2 moons orbiting the Solar System's largest planet that had not been seen before. It also discovered five moons orbiting Saturn, along with a previously unknown ring around the gas giant.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA works to extend Voyager spacecraft mission again: 'Every day could be our last'
For nearly 50 years, Nasa's twin Voyager spacecraft have just kept swimming – or zooming through space, collecting data from interstellar space farther than any other mission. NASA is trying to keep both spacecraft alive once again by taking additional steps to conserve energy. "Every minute of every day, the Voyagers explore a region where no spacecraft has gone before," Voyager project scientist Linda Spilker said in a NASA release. "That also means every day could be our last. But that day could also bring another interstellar revelation. So, we're pulling out all the stops, doing what we can to make sure Voyagers 1 and 2 continue their trailblazing for the maximum time possible." Voyager 1 and 2 launched in 1977 on a grand tour of the solar system, making flybys of all our planets – just not Pluto, which was still classified as a planet at the time. Voyager 1 And 2 Continue Offering New Mysteries From Interstellar Space After successfully completing each half of their tours, the spacecraft kept going (and going… and going) traveling in opposite directions out into the universe. According to NASA, Voyager 1 is more than 15 billion miles from Earth, and Voyager 2 is over 13 billion miles. The space agency continues to receive data from both space probes through the Deep Space Network even years after they crossed the heliosphere, the protective bubble of solar wind considered the boundary of our solar system. While both Voyager spacecraft started their mission launching from Florida with 10 science instruments, the spacecraft operators at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California continued to shut off instruments to conserve energy. After this month, only three instruments on each will remain operating. NASA announced engineers shut off the cosmic ray subsystem experiment on Voyager 1 on Feb. 25 and will shut off Voyager 2's low-energy charged particle instrument on March 24. Both spacecraft rely on a radioisotope power system that generates electricity from the heat of decaying plutonium. As each year passes, they each lose about 4 watts of power. "The Voyagers have been deep space rock stars since launch, and we want to keep it that way as long as possible," Voyager Project Manager Suzanne Dodd said. "But electrical power is running low. If we don't turn off an instrument on each Voyager now, they would probably have only a few more months of power before we would need to declare end of mission." Don't count the mission out yet. Voyagers teams in California have had an action-packed few years and decades working through issues with both spacecraft, from communication outages to mis-pointing antennae. NASA said with the latest energy conservation game plan, the Voyagers should have enough power to operate for another year before engineers shut off another article source: NASA works to extend Voyager spacecraft mission again: 'Every day could be our last'
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA Powers Down Equipment on Voyager Probes as They Struggle for Life
There's more bad news for NASA's Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft. The twin space probes left the solar system in 2012 and 2018 respectively, and are currently over 15 billion and 13 billion miles from Earth. And their energy sources, on-board radioisotope power systems, are decaying quickly, forcing the space agency's Jet Propulsion Lab to shut down even more of the spacecraft's scientific instruments. According to a new statement, Voyager 1's cosmic ray subsystem experiment was shut down last month, while Voyager 2's low-energy charged particle instrument will be shut down before the end of March. It's yet another sign that the spacecraft, which have been blasting through space for almost half a century, are on their very last breath. NASA has already had to be extremely conservative with the available power. The radioisotope thermoelectric generators, which use radioactively decaying plutonium-238 isotopes as a direct source of power, are losing roughly four watts of power each year, which means their days are numbered. "The Voyagers have been deep space rock stars since launch, and we want to keep it that way as long as possible," said JPL Voyager project manager Suzanne Dodd in the statement. "But electrical power is running low. If we don't turn off an instrument on each Voyager now, they would probably have only a few more months of power before we would need to declare end of mission." The team has been focusing on the spacecraft's scientific instruments that have been studying the solar system's heliosphere, a protective bubble formed by the Sun's activity that separates us from interstellar space. Scientists were already forced to turn off Voyager 2's plasma science instrument as a result of degraded performance back in October. The spacecraft's low-energy charged particle instrument, which will be shut down on March 24, has been relying on a stepper motor that's already vastly exceeded the amount of activity it was tested for. By the time it's deactivated, according to NASA, the motor will have completed more than 8.5 million steps — compared to just 500,000 it was tested for in the 1970s. "The Voyager spacecraft have far surpassed their original mission to study the outer planets," Voyager program scientist Patrick Koehn explained. "Every bit of additional data we have gathered since then is not only valuable bonus science for heliophysics, but also a testament to the exemplary engineering that has gone into the Voyagers — starting nearly 50 years ago and continuing to this day." Scientists are eager to eke out as much life out of the spacecraft as possible — but power is quickly running out. "Every minute of every day, the Voyagers explore a region where no spacecraft has gone before," said Voyager project scientist Linda Spilker in a statement. "That also means every day could be our last." More on the spacecraft: The Voyager Probes Are Dying
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA is shutting down parts of Voyager 1 and 2 to extend their lifespan
Nearly 50 years after they were first launched, Voyager 1 and 2 are still traveling around interstellar space — though they've faced some setbacks over the years. Now, NASA has announced that the twin Voyager spacecraft are losing some of their features in a bid to extend their lifespans in the face of a diminishing power supply. On February 25, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) turned off Voyager 1's cosmic ray subsystem experiment and on March 25, it will shut down Voyager 2's low-energy charged particle instrument. "The Voyagers have been deep space rock stars since launch, and we want to keep it that way as long as possible," said Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at the JPL. "But electrical power is running low. If we don't turn off an instrument on each Voyager now, they would probably have only a few more months of power before we would need to declare end of mission." Each probe will continue to run three science instruments, but hold another seven instruments which have turned off over time. Just last October, NASA shut down Voyager 2's plasma science instrument. However, both spacecraft have experienced recent issues. Last June, Voyager 1 finally starting running properly again, following seven months of technical issues, including unreadable data. It had a similar issue two years prior. In 2023, Voyager 2 went dark for two weeks after requiring technical assistance three years earlier. NASA still puts a lot of value in the Voyager probes. "Every minute of every day, the Voyagers explore a region where no spacecraft has gone before," said Linda Spilker, Voyager project scientist at JPL. "That also means every day could be our last. But that day could also bring another interstellar revelation. So, we're pulling out all the stops, doing what we can to make sure Voyagers 1 and 2 continue their trailblazing for the maximum time possible." Maybe at least until they hit 50 years in 2027? The slightly more cynical take on NASA 'pulling out all the stops' to keep them going is that they'd certainly love for the probes to be functional for their 50th anniversary in 2027 — which feels like a tall order despite the agency's best efforts.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA is shutting down parts of Voyager 1 and 2 to extend their lifespan
Nearly 50 years after they were first launched, Voyager 1 and 2 are still traveling around interstellar space — though they've faced some setbacks over the years. Now, NASA has announced that the twin Voyager spacecraft are losing some of their features in a bid to extend their lifespans in the face of a diminishing power supply. On February 25, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) turned off Voyager 1's cosmic ray subsystem experiment and on March 25, it will shut down Voyager 2's low-energy charged particle instrument. "The Voyagers have been deep space rock stars since launch, and we want to keep it that way as long as possible," said Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at the JPL. "But electrical power is running low. If we don't turn off an instrument on each Voyager now, they would probably have only a few more months of power before we would need to declare end of mission." See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Each probe will continue to run three science instruments, but hold another seven instruments which have turned off over time. Just last October, NASA shut down Voyager 2's plasma science instrument. However, both spacecraft have experienced recent issues. Last June, Voyager 1 finally starting running properly again, following seven months of technical issues, including unreadable data. It had a similar issue two years prior. In 2023, Voyager 2 went dark for two weeks after requiring technical assistance three years earlier. NASA still puts a lot of value in the Voyager probes. "Every minute of every day, the Voyagers explore a region where no spacecraft has gone before," said Linda Spilker, Voyager project scientist at JPL. "That also means every day could be our last. But that day could also bring another interstellar revelation. So, we're pulling out all the stops, doing what we can to make sure Voyagers 1 and 2 continue their trailblazing for the maximum time possible." Maybe at least until they hit 50 years in 2027? The slightly more cynical take on NASA 'pulling out all the stops' to keep them going is that they'd certainly love for the probes to be functional for their 50th anniversary in 2027 — which feels like a tall order despite the agency's best efforts.
