NASA reconnects with Voyager 1 after a 15 billion mile transmission problem

NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft, which has been traveling through space for more than 47 years, recently experienced a brief interruption in communications. On October 24, engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California regained contact with Voyager 1. The interruption was caused by the shutdown of one of the transmitters, likely caused by the spacecraft’s fault protection system, which shuts down certain systems when power is lost. is turned off. usage is too high. This incident has created new challenges for NASA, as communicating with a spacecraft more than 15 billion miles away presents unique technical challenges.

Fault protection system activates shutdown

Engineers identified the fault protection system as the likely cause behind the transmitter’s shutdown. This system saves energy by turning off non-essential equipment, allowing the spacecraft to continue its mission despite limited energy reserves. On October 16, JPL engineers sent a command to activate a heater on Voyager 1. However, instead of responding as expected, the command seemed to overload the system. By October 18, Voyager 1’s signals had faded, indicating a problem had occurred.

Communication restored, but challenges remain

After a series of attempts, the team arrived discovers that Voyager 1’s fault protection system had switched the spacecraft to a second, lower-power transmitter. The spacecraft’s usual communications system, known as X-band, was disabled, causing Voyager to switch to an S-band transmitter. The S-band transmitter, which has not been used since 1981, operates on a different frequency and transmits a weaker signal. This switch complicated reconnection efforts, but Deep Space Network engineers managed to locate Voyager’s weak S-band signal on October 19.

NASA’s plan to stabilize Voyager 1

NASA engineers have chosen not to switch back to the X-band transmitter until they can determine what triggered the fault protection system. On October 22, they confirmed that the S-band is stable and are now analyzing data to identify the cause. With more than 47 years of service, both Voyager 1 and its twin Voyager 2 remain the only probes active in interstellar space. Their advanced age poses technical challenges, but the NASA team remains committed to keeping in touch with these historic spacecraft as they continue their journey through the cosmos.