VOYAGER
2 - SCI & TECH
News:
NASA restores contact
with Voyager 2 spacecraft after mistake led to weeks of silence
What's
in the news?
● NASA's
Voyager 2 spacecraft, which is currently exploring the outer reaches of the
solar system, has encountered a communication problem due to an antenna
misalignment.
Voyager-2
Space craft:
● It
is a space probe launched by NASA on
August 20, 1977.
● To
study the outer planets of our solar
system and their moons, and then continue on an interstellar mission.
● It
is the second spacecraft to enter interstellar space.
○ On
Dec. 10, 2018, the spacecraft joined its twin - Voyager 1—as the only
human-made objects to enter the space between the stars.
Achievements
of Voyager 2:
● It
is the only spacecraft to have visited all four of the solar system's giant
outer planets.
Jupiter
Encounter:
● Discovered
a previously unknown moon of Jupiter and provided detailed images of the planet
and its moons, including the famous "Great
Red Spot."
● At
Uranus, Voyager 2 discovered 10 new
moons and two new rings.
● At
Neptune, Voyager 2 discovered five
moons, four rings, and a "Great
Dark Spot."
Voyager
Interstellar Mission:
● After
completing its primary mission to explore the outer planets, Voyager 2
continued its journey beyond the solar system.
● In
2018, it crossed the heliopause—the boundary that separates our solar system
from interstellar space.
Long-Distance
Communication:
● Despite
its immense distance from Earth, Voyager 2 continues to communicate with
scientists on Earth through NASA's Deep Space Network until the recent problem.