In a remarkable feat, NASA even reactivated thrusters that had been considered \u201cdead\u201d for more than 20 years \u2014 just to help the spacecraft keep moving forward through the vastness of space.<\/p>\n
Voyager 1 will soon break a space record.<\/p>\n
By the end of 2026, Voyager 1 will become the first human-made object so distant from Earth that a radio signal will take 24 hours to reach it. Currently, the probe is 25.3 billion kilometers away, and it takes 23 hours and 33 minutes\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/9XAkwLDmW4<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Black Hole (@konstructivizm) November 24, 2025<\/a> <\/p>\n A human-made machine, one light-day from Earth<\/p>\n Voyager 1 launched in 1977, crossed the boundaries of our solar system<\/a> in 2012, and has been drifting through interstellar space ever since, traveling at about 56,000 kilometers per hour. As it nears its 50th anniversary in space, the probe is about to reach another breathtaking milestone. Around November 15, 2026, it will be approximately 25.9 billion kilometers from Earth \u2014 one light-day away. That\u2019s a first in the entire history of humanity.<\/p>\n At that point, signals traveling at the speed of light \u2014 both to and from Voyager 1 \u2014 will take exactly 24 hours to arrive. This will make communication increasingly challenging, testing the limits of human ingenuity.<\/p>\n Voyager 1 is the first human-made object to reach interstellar space, having crossed the boundary of the heliosphere in 2012.<\/p>\n Voyager 1 carries a golden phonograph record containing sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth, intended as a\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/lX91ltQKFL<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Sci-Kick (@scikickquest) April 19, 2024<\/a> <\/p>\n The incredible journey of Voyager 1<\/p>\n The story of Voyager 1 is, above all, a story of wonder. This tiny probe, with memory millions of times smaller than a modern smartphone, set off on an interstellar odyssey that continues to astonish scientists. It carries with it the Golden Record \u2014 humanity\u2019s message in a cosmic bottle, sent toward potential alien civilizations. It also gave us the most distant portrait of Earth ever captured: the iconic \u201cpale blue dot.\u201d<\/p>\n NASA estimates that Voyager 1\u2019s power supply will run out sometime in the 2030s. When that happens, our link to the spacecraft \u2014 and to one of humanity\u2019s most daring adventures \u2014 will finally go silent. Yet Voyager 1 will continue its voyage, gliding through the darkness toward the Oort Cloud, which it should reach in about 300 years. Passing through it will take another 30,000 years. And in roughly 40,000 years, the probe will drift within 1.7 light-years of a small star in Ursa Minor known as AC+79 3888 \u2014 closer to it than to our own Sun<\/a>.<\/p>\n Nathalie Mayer<\/p>\n Journalist<\/p>\n Born in Lorraine on a freezing winter night, storytelling has always inspired me, first through my grandmother’s tales and later Stephen King’s imagination. A physicist turned science communicator, I’ve collaborated with institutions like CEA, Total, Engie, and Futura. Today, I focus on unraveling Earth’s complex environmental and energy challenges, blending science with storytelling to illuminate solutions.<\/p>\n \t\t![\"mayer-nathalie\"](\"https:\/\/www.futura-sciences.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/mayer-nathalie.avif\")
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