How long does it take to get a signal from Voyager 2?

The Voyagers transmit data to Earth every day. The spacecraft collect information about their surrounding environment in real time and then send it back through radio signals. Voyager 1 data takes about 19 hours to reach Earth, and signals from Voyager 2 about 16 hours.

What have we learned from Voyager 2?

Voyager 2 is the only spacecraft to study all four of the solar system’s giant planets at close range. Voyager 2 was the first human-made object to fly past Uranus. At Uranus, Voyager 2 discovered 10 new moons and two new rings. Voyager 2 was the first human-made object to fly by Neptune.

Is Voyager still sending data?

But farther—much farther—Voyager 1, one of the oldest space probes and the most distant human-made object from Earth, is still doing science. But even as it drifts farther and farther from a dimming sun, it’s still sending information back to Earth, as scientists recently reported in The Astrophysical Journal.

What did we learn from the Voyager mission?

The Voyager mission not only transformed our knowledge of Jupiter, Saturn and their dozens of moons, it also gave us our first close-up look at the strange and wondrous planets Uranus and Neptune. Voyager 2 joined its pioneering twin in the outer limits of the Sun’s sphere of influence in 2018.

How has Voyager 2 influenced science?

Based on Voyager 2’s crossing, the astronomers learned that the heliosphere has a smooth but defined boundary between the two types of plasma. They also noted a strong interstellar magnetic field, stronger than what Voyager 1 detected.

How long would it take us to leave our solar system?

The spacecraft may be zipping along at a breathtaking 35,000 mph, but they still will take many millennia to truly leave the solar system. Voyager 1’s course could take it close to another star in some 40,000 years, while Voyager 2 won’t get close to another star for some 300,000 years, according to NASA.