(CNN) – The Voyager 1 spacecraft is still exploring interstellar space 45 years after it was launched, but it has encountered the problem of blocking the space shuttle on Earth.
Voyager 1 continues Works well, Despite its advanced age and 23.3 billion kilometers from Earth. It also receives and executes commands sent by NASA, as well as collects and transmits scientific data.
But readings from the approach control and pronunciation system that monitors the orbit of the spacecraft in space are what Voyager is really doing. The accent and approach control system, or AACS, ensures that the probe’s high-gain antenna is pointing toward Earth, so Voyager can send data to NASA.
Due to Voyager interstellar location, It takes 20 hours and 33 minutes for light to travel one way, so it takes two days to return a call and message between NASA and Voyager.
So far, the Voyager team believes AACS is still working, but the device’s data reading seems inconsistent or impossible. This system problem has not yet prompted anything to put the spacecraft in “safe mode”. Only then will the essential functions run, so engineers can diagnose the problem of endangering the spacecraft.
But Voyager’s signal is as strong as ever, meaning the antenna is still facing the earth. The team is trying to determine if this false data is coming directly from this tool or from another organization.
“Until we have a better understanding of the nature of the problem, the team will not be able to predict whether this will affect how long the spacecraft will be capable of collecting and transmitting scientific data,” the NASA report said.
Susan Todd, project manager for Voyager 1 and 2 at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said: “Such a mystery is natural at this stage of Voyager’s mission. That is a statement.
“The spacecraft is about 45 years old, which is much higher than galaxy planners expected. I hope you find out. “
If the team does not determine the source of the problem, they can simply fix it, Todd said. Or if they can find it, they can fix the problem by changing the software or relying on an unwanted hardware system.
Voyager already relies on backup security systems. Prope Fire Thrusters used at its early planetary encounters in 2017 and 1970, and have not been in use for 37 years.
Aging probes produce very little power per year, so auxiliary systems and heaters have been turned off for years, so important systems and scientific instruments can continue to operate.
Voyager 2, a sister spacecraft, continues to thrive in galaxy space at a distance of 19.5 billion kilometers from Earth. In comparison, Neptune is the farthest planet from Earth, at a maximum distance of 4.667 million kilometers. Both probes were launched in 1977 and are much larger than their original purpose for the planets.
Now, they have become the only two spacecraft to collect data from galaxy space and provide information about the solar system or the bubble created by the sun.
