NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft has temporarily lost communication with Earth due to an unexpected shift in its antenna direction. However, NASA experts are confident that the next scheduled orientation adjustment on October 15th will restore communication. Meanwhile, Voyager 1 is unaffected and continues to operate as usual.
The communication disruption occurred on July 21st when a series of programmed commands unintentionally changed the antenna’s direction by 2 degrees away from Earth. As a result, the spacecraft lost its ability to receive commands or transmit data back to Earth, as it is currently over 12.3 billion miles away from our planet.
The misalignment has disrupted the communication link between Voyager 2 and NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) ground antennas. The spacecraft cannot send data to the DSN, nor can it receive commands from ground controllers.
To rectify the situation, Voyager 2 is programmed to adjust its orientation multiple times a year to realign its antenna with Earth. The next adjustment is planned for October 15th, and it is expected to restore communication. Despite the interruption, the mission team reassures that Voyager 2 will continue along its planned trajectory during this temporary quiet period.
In contrast, Voyager 1, which is nearly 15 billion miles away from Earth, remains unaffected and operational.
Launched by NASA in 1977, Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 are twin spacecraft designed to explore the outer solar system. Despite their age, both spacecraft are still operational and provide valuable scientific data.
Voyager 1 was launched on September 5, 1977, with the objective of flying by Jupiter and Saturn. Along the way, it provided detailed images and data of these gas giants and their moons. Voyager 1 also made significant discoveries, such as active volcanoes on Jupiter’s moon Io and intricate ring systems around Saturn. In 2012, Voyager 1 made history by becoming the first spacecraft to enter interstellar space.
Voyager 2, launched on August 20, 1977, holds the distinction of being the only spacecraft to have visited all four outer planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Its mission uncovered important details about these planets and their moons, including the discovery of Neptune’s Great Dark Spot and Uranus’s off-center magnetic field.
Both Voyager spacecraft carry a “Golden Record,” a phonograph record containing sounds and images representing the diversity of life and culture on Earth. This record serves as a message to any potential extraterrestrial intelligence that might come across it.
The Voyager spacecraft were developed and continue to be operated by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of Caltech in Pasadena. The Voyager missions are part of the NASA Heliophysics System Observatory, which is sponsored by the Heliophysics Division of the Science Mission Directorate in Washington.