Voyager 2

Active

The only spacecraft to visit all four giant planets - Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Voyager 2 provided humanity's first and only close-up look at the ice giants and entered interstellar space in 2018, continuing its epic journey of discovery.

Type

Deep Space Probe

Launch Date

August 20, 1977

Location

Interstellar Space

Latest Scientific Discovery

Live Mission Data

Deep Space Communication

Distance from Earth

20.9 billion km from Earth

Signal Travel Time

One-way: ~18 hours

Mission Duration

47+ years operational

Mission Achievements

✓Only spacecraft to visit Uranus (1986) and Neptune (1989)
✓Entered interstellar space (November 5, 2018)
✓Discovered 11 new moons: 3 at Jupiter, 4 at Saturn, 2 at Uranus, 2 at Neptune
✓First detailed images of Neptune's Great Dark Spot
✓Discovered active geysers on Neptune's moon Triton
✓Revealed Uranus' unusual tilted magnetic field
✓Discovered Neptune's rings and unusual magnetic field
✓First to detect lightning on Jupiter and Saturn
✓Confirmed Europa has a subsurface ocean
✓Operating continuously for over 47 years

Mission Timeline

Mission Timeline & Milestones

Aug 20, 1977

Launch

Launched 16 days before Voyager 1

Jul 9, 1979

Jupiter Encounter

Discovered Jupiter's 14th moon and studied the Great Red Spot

Aug 25, 1981

Saturn Encounter

Detailed study of Saturn's rings and moons

Jan 24, 1986

Uranus Encounter

First and only spacecraft to visit Uranus

Aug 25, 1989

Neptune Encounter

First and only spacecraft to visit Neptune

Aug 30, 2007

Termination Shock

Crossed the termination shock at 84 AU

Nov 5, 2018

Entered Interstellar Space

Second human-made object to leave the heliosphere

Jul 21, 2020

DSN Upgrade

Contact restored after 8-month communication blackout

2025 (Est)

Science Instrument Shutdown

Expected to begin shutting down instruments to conserve power

Mission Objectives

▸Complete the Grand Tour visiting all four giant planets
▸First reconnaissance of Uranus and Neptune systems
▸Study the ice giants' atmospheres, rings, and moons
▸Investigate the outer boundary of the solar system
▸Explore interstellar space from a different region than Voyager 1
▸Compare interstellar medium data with Voyager 1 findings
▸Continue operations until power depletion (~2025)

Scientific Instruments

•Imaging Science System (ISS): Twin cameras for detailed planetary photography
•Cosmic Ray Subsystem (CRS): Studies high-energy particles
•Plasma Science (PLS): Measures solar wind and planetary magnetospheres
•Low-Energy Charged Particle (LECP): Analyzes ions and electrons
•Magnetometer (MAG): Maps magnetic fields
•Infrared Interferometer Spectrometer (IRIS): Analyzed atmospheric composition
•Photopolarimeter System (PPS): Studied atmospheric particles
•Planetary Radio Astronomy (PRA): Detected radio emissions from planets
•Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS): Studied atmospheric composition
•Golden Record: Identical to Voyager 1, carrying Earth's message to the cosmos