With its twin Voyager 2 in 1977 sent into space Traveler 1, He has been wandering through space for 46 years. However, being so old brought some problems. A statement from NASA also revealed that a new problem had been encountered in the vehicle.

NASA shared an update on Voyager 1 on December 12. The agency announced that there was a problem with one of the vehicle’s three computers. This problem, Flight Data System (FDS) It started in the section with the name.

NASA engineers have been trying for three days to solve the problem that caused the vehicle to lose communication with Earth.

According to NASA’s statements, the spacecraft can receive and process commands coming from Earth. However, the FDS cannot communicate with one of its subsystems, the Telemetry Modulation Unit (TMU). This problem too Voyager I couldn’t send data to Earth.meaning he can’t communicate.

FDS is designed to collect data on the health and condition of the spacecraft as well as data from scientific instruments. This information was then combined by the TMU into a data packet that was sent back to Earth. Please note that the data is in the form of ones, zeros, or binary codes.

According to NASA, TMU has been recently repetitive ones and zeros started shipping. After evaluating all possibilities, the researchers determined that the source of the error was FDS. Last weekend, the team tried to restart the FDS and restore it to its previous state, but the spacecraft still failed to transmit data. This showed that the situation could be serious.

According to the agency’s statement Engineers are still working on solutions continues. However, there has been no new development for 3 days.

It takes 22 and a half hours for the data to arrive

Of course, we must emphasize that it takes so long for the data to arrive that we cannot immediately understand whether or not the problem has been resolved. Voyager 1 is currently exploring the outer reaches of our solar system 24 billion kilometers away. This means that the signals reach About 22 hours and 34 minutes keeps it going. So the team must wait at least 45 hours before signals can be sent and received.

Voyager 1 is one of the two longest operating spacecraft in human history. The vehicle, which carries many of humanity’s messages in case it encounters aliens, including greetings in 55 languages, traveled to the outer solar system in 2012. The first spacecraft to enter interstellar space He also managed to become one. During the years it remained operational, it sent us signals from far away. I mean, it’s a miracle he even survived this long.

We wait to see if the current problem is resolved. But even if it is resolved, experts say by 2025 He expected to finish his life. So now or in a few years he will be alone in the darkness of space, billions of miles away.