Voyager 2 launched 38 years ago!

The Energizer Bunny has noting on the Voyager 2 spacecraft, launched 38 years ago today.  Thanks to a serendipitous alignment of planets, Voyager 2 set out to visit the four giant outer planets of our solar system, something no probe has ever done.  With is mission complete in 1989, Voyager 2 is now far beyond the orbit of Pluto.

Now it will continue to collect data and beam it back to Earth for another five years when it will not be able to generate enough power to run its on-board instruments.

Its closest approach to Jupiter was July 9, 1979; Saturn on August 25, 1981; Uranus, January 24, 1986; and Neptune, August 25, 1989.

Besides an array of scientific equipment, Voyager 2 carries a 12-inch gold plated copper disc encased in a protective aluminum jacket.  It is to be played as a phonograph so there is a needle and a cartridge plus instructions because by the time Voyager 2 is discovered by aliens, like us, they will have forgotten how to play vinyl.  It is doubtful they will be able to locate a turn-table.

But, if they are successful, they can hear nature sounds like wind and thunder, whales, and music such as Bach, Beethoven and Berry (as in Chuck Berry’s Johnny B. Goode).

Io

Voyager 2 observed volcanic eruptions on Io, one of Jupiter’s moons.  Its high-resolution images of Europa left scientists baffled at the lack of topological features.

Saturn with moons Tethys, Dion and Rhea

Both Voyager 1 and 2 discovered interesting aspects of Saturn’s rings that resembled spokes of a wheel.  However, Voyager 1 headed out of the solar system while Voyager 2 set course for Uranus and Neptune.

Uranus

Being the first and only to visit, Voyager 2 found 10 new moons around Uranus and revealed many unique features that should keep scientists busy for years to come.

           

High altitude clouds on Neptune

Neptune has a Great Dark Spot, similar to Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, about the size of Earth.

Now Voyager 2 is sending back data on the heliopause, the outermost boundary of the solar wind.  May it continue to collect data long after it loses the ability to transmit it.

And then not get caught in a black hole and transported to the far side of the galaxy where it becomes the monstrous V-Ger and heads back to Earth to find its creator and eliminate all the carbon units only to be foiled by the USS Enterprise.