An incredible achievement for a comparatively rudimentary satellite - really quite remarkable that it's still reporting back, after all these years - and it's about to go interstellar. Mind: blown. Truly venturing forth into the unknown...

Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, has reached a new milestone in its quest to leave the Solar System. Now 17.4bn km (10.8bn miles) from home, the veteran probe has detected a distinct change in the flow of particles that surround it.
These particles, which emanate from the Sun, are no longer travelling outwards but are moving sideways. It means Voyager must be very close to making the jump to interstellar space - the space between the stars.
 Full article, with Dr. Ed Stone audio interview and graphics: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11988466


 

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