[DBursey]

from NewScientist.com:

Voyager Says Goodbye to Solar System

from the article:

The most distant man-made object - the Voyager 1 spacecraft - is finally leaving the Solar System. Astronomers think the probe has reached a boundary where the Sun's influence starts to wane.

For years, scientists thought Voyager 1 must be getting close to the Solar System's "termination shock". This is the region where supersonic particles streaming from the Sun plough into interstellar particles and slow to subsonic speeds. This region, often considered to mark the Solar System's edge, should energise lots of particles and have a strong magnetic field.



The longevity of the Voyager program has been exceptional. Twenty-six years worth of data collected - and transmitted at 44 kbps via a 23 watt radio - has provided considerable information on the composition of outer solar system. The Voyager mission took a lot of man-years and a small fortune to throw into the sky, but the payback in data has kept astronomers and researchers busy for years. The plutonium fueled thermoelectric supply should power the craft's science and communication gear until about 2020, when the available voltage is expected to drop below a crucial threshold. Voyager is expected to reach the heliopause - where interstellar space begins - by that time. With luck, Voyager's tiny voice will be detected right to the end.

Some Voyager Links:

Nasa: Voyager

The spacecraft

Audio synthesis of interstellar 'noise' detected by Voyager (MP3)

[Sherwin]

Annika wonders why Paris is flying in the wrong direction.

[::maroma::]

Is that REALLY what it sound like out there?? Or is that a representation of what it would sound like? If it does indeed sounds just like that, I am just astounded. It's beautiful!

[Oneota]

Originally posted by ::maroma:::
Is that REALLY what it sound like out there?? Or is that a representation of what it would sound like? If it does indeed sounds just like that, I am just astounded. It's beautiful!

There can't be any "sound" out there, as we know it, 'cause there isn't any atmosphere to transfer the sound waves. In order for sound to travel, it has to have matter to disturb. So that MP3 isn't an actual recording, but, like the link says, a synthesis using something else as a datasource.

[Edit: Having actually listened to the MP3, they talk about how it is sound within the range of human hearing...so perhaps I stand corrected. However, I'd want to see some scientific confirmation of what the MP3 says - the file resides on a web server called Spiritsound, which seems a little too new-age-y to be taken without a grain of salt.]

[sideus]

Amazing that space speaks english.

[::maroma::]

Originally posted by Oneota:
There can't be any "sound" out there, as we know it, 'cause there isn't any atmosphere to transfer the sound waves. In order for sound to travel, it has to have matter to disturb. So that MP3 isn't an actual recording, but, like the link says, a synthesis using something else as a datasource.

[Edit: Having actually listened to the MP3, they talk about how it is sound within the range of human hearing...so perhaps I stand corrected]

Ahh, yes, I didn't really read the link to carefully. It is indeed a synthesis of what it would sound like. Still, pretty damned cool. That kind of stuff just makes me want to be out there with Voyager 1, free floating in space! (if it weren't for the damn lack of atmosphere and all that other stuff.)