For over 43 years, the Voyager 2 spacecraft has been exploring outer space, far exceeding its original mission expectations. Now, NASA has created a way to continue its mission.
A New Power Strategy Helps NASA's Voyager 2 to Reach Unprecedented Milestones
According to the story by The Hill, this remarkable feat is all thanks to NASA's engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory coming up with a new power strategy, tapping into a backup reservoir of energy to operate until at least 2026.
Since its launch in 1977, Voyager 2 has seen its fair share of milestones and is about to reach another one. The spacecraft is set to continue its operations for years longer than expected due to a new power strategy developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) scientists.
This new plan could mean that Voyager 2 will continue to orbit around the outskirts of our solar system sending back invaluable data that could still hold many mysteries and unanswered questions.
Uncovering the Unknowns: Exploring the Heliosphere With Voyager 2
Voyager 2 is currently 12 billion miles from Earth and is the only spacecraft out of the Earth's heliosphere, or bubble of particles generated by the Sun around itself and its planets.
This area of the solar system is difficult to explore and has many unknowns left to discover, making the data that traveler sends back invaluable. As the spacecraft's power source was running low, NASA's JPL developed a solution to use the backup reservoir of power that would keep Voyager 2 in space until at least 2026.
The team also looked into shutting down one of the five instruments on Voyager 2 to save energy but instead opted to try tapping into the backup power supply to keep all five instruments active.
Unprecedented Use of Reserve Power Extends Voyager 2 Mission
The idea was successful, and NASA didn't need a safety net to keep the systems running at the same voltage. Recently, it was reported that the Voyager 2 science mission would be extended another three years, per Earth Sky.
Considering the team at NASA's remarkable feat of keeping Voyager 2 in space despite its age, this power strategy may also be applied to Voyager 1. Currently, Voyager 1 only has four instruments, and using the reserve may allow the extension to continue this long-running mission.
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The Expansion of the Voyager 2 Mission - Expanding the Boundaries of Space Exploration
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory has been monitoring Voyager 2 over the last few weeks, and the new approach seems to be working, marking a major milestone for this iconic spacecraft.
Although Voyager 2 and Voyager 1 were theoretically designed to last just five years, scientists now hope to expand the mission time for the iconic spacecraft for even more time, collecting data that it may have taken decades for us to reach otherwise.
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