NASA Powers down Voyager 2 Science Instrument as Energy Dwindles

NASA intends to maintain Voyager 2 in operation into the 2030s, extending its landmark journey to the "final frontier" beyond the solar system

Due to low power sources, NASA engineers have decided to shut down one of Voyager 2's science instruments to ensure the spacecraft can continue its interstellar exploration. Launched in 1977, Voyager 2 is approximately 12.8 billion miles from Earth and has exited the solar system in 2018. The four instruments that remain are currently utilized for doing research in regions beyond the heliosphere.

NASA shut the plasma instrument on September 26, after it had yielded vital information verifying Voyager 2's arrival into interstellar space. Since the spacecraft left the heliosphere, the instrument's usefulness had been restricted because three of its four "cups" for collecting plasma were pointed toward the sun and no longer collected data. The remaining active cup was judged to be less important than other instruments because it only collects data during the spacecraft's periodic rotations. Voyager 2 and its twin, Voyager 1, are the only two man-made spacecraft currently exploring interstellar space. The mission specialists have to carefully handle resources because each of the two probes is powered by decaying plutonium, which loses around 4 watts of power annually. As part of their plan to extend the Voyager missions, NASA decided to turn off the instruments.

NASA intends to maintain Voyager 2 in operation into the 2030s, extending its landmark journey to the "final frontier" beyond the solar system, despite the fact that six of its instruments have already been deactivated.  Since the plasma instrument on Voyager 1 was turned off in 2007, the current shutdown of Voyager 2 is yet another deliberate move to prolong its mission.