Voyager Program: Around the Solar System and Beyond

In 1977, NASA launched the twin Voyager spacecraft on an ambitious mission to explore the outer planets. Voyagers 1 and 2 took advantage of a rare planetary alignment to conduct a “grand tour” of the solar system using gravity to assist flybys in reaching Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. The probes sent back stunning images of these distant worlds, revealing a wealth of new scientific data. Voyager 1’s famous “Pale Blue Dot” image depicts Earth as a tiny speck against the vastness of space—a humbling perspective. Beyond the planets, the probes entered interstellar space, crossing the boundary where the Sun’s influence ends. Even now, after more than 40 years, Voyager 1 and 2 continue to transmit data to Earth as they journey into the unknown. The Voyagers represent an unparalleled achievement in exploration and altered our understanding of the solar system. Carrying the Golden Record containing sounds and images of Earth, they voyage onward as emissaries of humanity to the stars.