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    NASA · Flyby / Deep space

    Voyager 1

    The most distant human-made object. After flying past Jupiter and Saturn it became the first spacecraft to cross the heliopause into interstellar space in 2012.

    ActiveStill returning data from interstellar space with a reduced set of instruments to conserve its declining power.

    Launch date

    1977-09-05

    Destination

    Interstellar space

    Agencies

    NASA

    Objectives

    • Flybys of Jupiter and Saturn
    • Study the outer heliosphere and interstellar medium

    Spacecraft

    722 kg at launch; powered by three radioisotope thermoelectric generators; 3.7 m high-gain antenna

    Scientific instruments and systems

    • Magnetometer
    • Plasma wave subsystem
    • Cosmic ray and charged-particle instruments (several now switched off)

    Timeline

    1. 1977-09-05Launch on Titan IIIE–Centaur
    2. 1979-03-05Closest approach to Jupiter
    3. 1980-11-12Closest approach to Saturn and Titan
    4. 1990-02-14Captured the 'Pale Blue Dot' image of Earth
    5. 2012-08-25Crossed the heliopause into interstellar space

    Major achievements

    • First spacecraft in interstellar space
    • Discovered active volcanoes on Io (with Voyager 2)

    Status reviewed 2026-10-23. For official images and the latest updates, visit the agency pages listed under Sources.