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NASA's Voyager mission was launched 40 years ago:
NASA's historic Voyager mission has now been exploring the heavens for four decades.
The Voyager 2 spacecraft launched on Aug. 20, 1977, a few weeks before its twin, Voyager 1. Together, the two probes conducted an unprecedented "Grand Tour" of the outer solar system, beaming home up-close looks at Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and many of the moons of these giant planets.
This work revealed a jaw-dropping diversity of worlds, fundamentally reshaping scientists' understanding of the solar system. And then the Voyagers kept on flying. In August 2012, Voyager 1 became the first spacecraft ever to reach interstellar space — and Voyager 2 is expected to arrive in this exotic realm soon as well.
The rest of the article is a Q&A with Voyager project scientist and former director of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Ed Stone.
Also at BBC and NBC. Image gallery at Ars Technica. A PBS special about the mission will air on August 23.
No missions have been sent to Uranus or Neptune since Voyager 2 visited them in 1986 and 1989.
Related: Pioneer and Voyager Maps to Earth: How Much of a Mistake?
Voyager's 'Cosmic Map' Of Earth's Location Is Hopelessly Wrong
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Monday August 21 2017, @07:17PM
> I'll just reuse this comment.
If the Empire dominated the world using only about 40% of its current expenses, it would free about 330 000 000 000 dollars annually to fix US infrastructure, give you everything on your list, and still have some cash left over to reduce the debt.
But we're afraid of something.