Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 were launched in 1977 and have been travelling through space at 40,000 MPH for over 30 years now. 11 billion miles from Earth, they contain earthly artifacts, such as a golden record containing Earth sounds and greetings from Earth. They have provided NASA scientists with valuable information about the outer planets (its primary mission) and although their nuclear reactors are beginning to wind down (it should lose power by 2025), they are still delivering information back to Earth.
Sometime in the next two years, Voyager 1 will exit the solar system and enter the unknown and unexplored interstellar space. Voyager 2 is travelling a bit slower but is not too far behind. New data from Voyager 1 indicates it is nearing the heliosphere’s edge (it is in the heliosheath right now), where it will no longer be influenced by the sun. Still, to reach our nearest neighboring star, Proxima Centauri, will take it another 76,000 years, likely long after we have become extinct.
