CRBC News
Culture
Society
Security
Health
Conflict
Science
Technology
Politics
Environment
Lifestyle
Economy

Voyager 1 Nears One-Light-Day Milestone — 25.9 Billion km Away, 24-Hour Signal Delay

Voyager 1 will be about 25.9 billion km (16.1 billion miles) from Earth on November 15, 2026, reaching the distance light travels in one day and producing roughly a 24-hour one-way signal delay. Launched in 1977, it completed its planetary mission in 1980 and entered interstellar space in 2012. The probe runs on three RTGs expected to last into the 2030s, and engineers recovered it after a critical 2023 memory error. Despite its record distance, interstellar journeys remain enormous — the nearest star is still about four light-years away.

03:50 AM, 11/29/2025Science
Voyager 1 Nears One-Light-Day Milestone — 25.9 Billion km Away, 24-Hour Signal Delay

Voyager 1, the most distant human-made object, will cross the distance light travels in one day on November 15, 2026, reaching about 16.1 billion miles (25.9 billion kilometres) from Earth. At that range a radio command sent from Earth will take roughly 24 hours to reach the probe and another 24 hours for its reply — a reminder of both how far it has traveled and how challenging long-distance spacecraft operations are.

How fast and how far

The spacecraft is moving at roughly 37,300 miles per hour (about 60,000 km/h), which is just over 10 miles per second. Though that speed is enormous by terrestrial standards, interstellar distances remain vast: the nearest star, Proxima Centauri, lies about four light-years away, meaning Voyager 1 would take on the order of tens of thousands of years to get there at its present velocity.

Mission history and current status

Launched on September 5, 1977, Voyager 1 completed its prime mission studying Jupiter, Saturn and several moons in 1980. The mission was later extended as the Voyager Interstellar Mission. By 2004 the probe had entered the heliosheath — the region where the Sun’s solar wind slows — and in 2012 it crossed the boundary widely described as interstellar space.

Voyager 1 is powered by three radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs), which are expected to provide usable power into the 2030s, allowing continued data returns for several more years. In 2023 the mission briefly faced a serious software issue caused by a bit flip that corrupted memory and disrupted telemetry; engineers on the ground diagnosed and corrected the fault, restoring the probe’s ability to orient itself and send scientific measurements.

Why it matters

Beyond the technical milestones, Voyager 1 carries a symbolic message: a golden record containing sounds and images from Earth meant for any future finder. Scientifically, the probe continues to provide unique measurements of the outer heliosphere and interstellar medium — data that cannot be obtained from any other platform.

Bottom line: On November 15, 2026 Voyager 1 will mark a practical milestone for deep-space communications — one light-day away — while continuing to teach us about the boundary between our Sun’s influence and interstellar space.

Similar Articles

Trending