Both Voyager probes rely on radioisotope thermoelectric generators. The nuclear power supply loses 4 watts per year as the plutonium it relies on slowly decays and its heat is converted into ...

The spacecraft is nearly 50 years old, having launched in 1977, and has long since traveled beyond the orbit of Pluto and out into interstellar space. The recent issues with Voyager 1 began in ...

NASA's Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft have long ... But despite scientists' best efforts, little can be done about the two probes' dwindling plutonium reserves. Nonetheless, the team is still ...

After launching into space almost 50 years ago, NASA's Voyager probes are reaching the end ... that could generate power through decaying Plutonium-238 isotopes. Heat released by the decaying ...

The Voyager spacecraft rely on electricity generated from the heat of decaying plutonium, and both are losing an estimated 4 ...

The decision comes as the Voyager spacecraft face diminishing power supplies due to the gradual decay of their radioactive plutonium. Going where no spacecraft has gone before: NASA shuts down ...

Both Voyager probes are equipped with a radioisotope power system, a nuclear battery that uses the heat of decaying plutonium to generate electricity. The system produced 470 watts of power at ...

New batches of plutonium-238 may become ... New Horizons probe gearing up for epic crossing of 'termination shock' NASA switches off Voyager instruments to extend life of the two interstellar ...

To do that, both spacecraft rely on three radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) fueled by decaying plutonium-238. Although this provided Voyager 1 and 2 with about 470 W at 30 volts when ...

Voyager 1, which has traveled further ... However, these RTGs produce less and less power each year as the plutonium on board decays. "If the spacecraft overdraws its power supply, fault ...