After 45 years, the 5 billion years legacy of Voyager probes just began.

The most successful space mission in history, Voyager left our solar system. Those two probes are outside heliopause. The most out position of our solar system. Heliopause means the point where ions flow from the Sun mixes with ions that are coming from other stars. That spacecraft gave multiple wonderful images to the researcher. It found many strange things. And the last thing that this spacecraft found was the cosmic hum. NASA plans to keep in contact or analyze the data that those probes sent for as long as possible. 

The lifespan of those probes will extend by shutting down the systems. And somewhere in the 2030s, all systems of those probes end their operations. But long before that the helium storage of the gas rockets ends and two-way communication between probes and Earth turns impossible or meaningless. The information sent from Earth includes orders to change the posture of the probe. 

And another thing is how to use the instruments. So when Voyager probes left from Heliopause there is no need to use things like cameras or change their position. If the tracks of the probes change that tells that there is some gravitational object that changes it. Or there is the possibility that some energy impact like cosmic eruption hits to probe. But the fact is that only outside effects can change that trajectory. 

The computers of those probes are the masterpiece of programming. Credit cards have more memory than those primitive computers. But they are an example of how effective code can make that kind of system able to do its jobs. 

Image 2) "The two Voyager spacecraft took different paths through the solar system, and both have since left the sun’s influence entirely". (Astonomy.com/Voyager: What’s next for NASA's interstellar probes?)

NASA/JPL-Caltech

Image 3) "The Voyager golden record (left) is a 12-inch gold-plated copper disc. It’s covered with aluminum and electroplated with an ultra-pure sample of uranium-238". (Astonomy.com/Voyager: What’s next for NASA's interstellar probes?)

NASA

Image 4) "Only the Voyager probes have passed the heliopause, leaving the sun’s influence. New probes may one day study the interstellar medium lying beyond". (Astonomy.com/Voyager: What’s next for NASA's interstellar probes?)

NASA-JPL/Caltech

The antenna of those probes turned to Earth. And it can transmit data to the largest telescopes on Earth. Conditions outside Heiosphere are stable. And there is almost nothing that can turn the position of that antenna. So because Voyagers turned their antenna to Earth they can stay in that position forever. Or until some impact with micrometeorite or another outside force effect the position of those probes. 

Those two probes show that being near the observable planet gives more details than telescopes. In 40000 years Voyager 1 could reach another star. But that star is red dwarf. 

The distance between the Earth and the center of our galaxy is 26 000 light years. And Voyager traveled only 18 light hours. So that is a good example of distances in the universe. 

After millions of years, those probes will reach some yellow star. Maybe there is a planet orbiting that star. And maybe the famous golden plates can be analyzed by some researchers on that planet. 

There is a small possibility that someday in the distant future our descendants will be those researchers. Maybe some interstellar craft reaches that probe. And then those researchers find evidence of the ancient civilization that once sent that spacecraft. The position of the Sun is changed. 

And maybe the data of the Voyager is buried deep in the computer archives. Or maybe, the data of the famous gold plates of the probe. That sent billions of years ago is lost. While Voyager travels outside our solar system it's the gravitational center. And that means it pulls the microscopic particles to it. When those impacts continue for billions of years they can cause damage to those gold plates. 

But the fact is that Voyagers themselves can be the thing that helps those hypothetical researchers to find the origin of those probes. The elementary and isotope fingerprint in the material of the Voyager probes is unique. There is the possibility that the researchers are using advanced spectroscopy to analyze the materials of the Voyager spacecraft. And then they are starting to find a solar system with similar chemical and isotopic compound that is found in the body of those probes. The question will we ever see them again? 

https://astronomy.com/news/2020/04/voyager-whats-next-for-nasas-interstellar-probes

https://phys.org/news/2022-08-years-billion-year-legacy-voyager-interstellar.html

https://scitechdaily.com/nasas-longest-lived-mission-voyager-probes-log-45-years-in-space/

Image:1) https://scitechdaily.com/nasas-longest-lived-mission-voyager-probes-log-45-years-in-space/

Images 2-4:) https://astronomy.com/news/2020/04/voyager-whats-next-for-nasas-interstellar-probes

https://informationnevervanishes.blogspot.com/

The thinking about the alien invasion, what is made by our own space probe, what would turn against us

Fictional "Battlestar Galactica"
(Picture 1)

Kimmo Huosionmaa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mS3mbKvSVDI


Above the text is a link to the movie, where portraying fictional or hypothetical trip to another solar system. The trip would make by an automatized space probe, what uses highly sophisticated artificial intelligence. That kind of space probes what would fly about 20% speed of light are maybe possible in distant future, and there would be the risk that those probes would turn against the human race. In that scenario, the attacking alien is actually the man-made probe what attacks to Earth for some reason. Some people have made the scenario that some probes would want to revenge the treatment of the robots on Earth.


This might be possible if the robots or artificial intelligence thinks itself as a living organism. Those people have spoken with dark humor about the opportunity, that Voyager-space probes would become intelligent in the superconducting circumstances. And then more advanced probe would find that, and then this more advanced probe turns against its creators because it would want to revenge the treatment of this "helpless Voyager probe". But this is only the philosophical thinking about it.

I'm considering one very big thing about the stories of alien invasion. Those though is connecting with space investigation and space probes. When we would send the probes far away from Earth,  those probes would need state of art artificial intelligence to accomplish the mission. And in some talkings have mentioned, that our greatest threat would be artificial intelligence. The artificial intelligence what is used in those probes might be the great threat to mankind.


Because if those space probes have “Von Neumann” capacity, what means that those probes can make copies of themselves. Those probes would find necessary materials by using laser-spectrometers and 3D printing systems, and that would give the probe more capacities than single probe ever could have. The reason for sending those highly intelligent probes to other solar systems would cause the reason to make those vehicles lighter. If they can fix themselves by using asteroids as raw material, what would be melted in the small factory, would the mission successful.


And if the computer can make the vehicles, what are needed for planet surface operations autonomically, would that help the operation success. And if there would many interesting planets in that alien solar system, would there be enough landing probes for every planet. Because this fictional probe would produce its own landing probes, failure of single landing probe doesn’t cause troubles for its mission. But if the artificial intelligence would become abreast of itself, and starts to think like human and protect itself, would this kind of probe become the ultimate enemy.


The problem of those probes is that they can be covered some top secret missions. To other solar systems might send the probes, what are used for making weapons. And those factories might use artificial intelligence and evolution modeling for creating perfect weapons. In this case, some secret military organization would send the automatic factory to another solar system, and then that factory begins artificial evolution. In this fictional nightmare, those automatized factories would send the results of their work to earth.


Then those solar systems would send the probe, for investigating that star. And then those military robots would strike against those probes, and then they would start the way to the Earth. In the film below, the animals of Darwin four doesn’t seem natural. And maybe those hypothetical beasts and other animals are created by some computer, what uses artificial evolution for creating new kind of super robots. Then the drone from Earth would tell to those robots, where they can find the Earth.


There is an interesting film about alien contact, and its made by BBC. Link to this film finds at the above and end of this text. In this film is fictional predators, what have little bit different touches than natural robots would have. Also, the “bird” with jet motors might mean for some example, what can be made by using high-level biotechnology and artificial intelligence.


And this BBC-made film could perform the planet, where have been artificial evolution because of some reasons. Maybe the makers of that film are thought the situation, that there would send the automatic factory for weapon research to another solar system. Then the probe would follow that factory after a couple of hundred or thousand years because the makers of that automatic factory want to find out, what that machine can really do.

Sources: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mS3mbKvSVDI

Picture 1:

https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--N4QZRQ6c--/c_scale,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/lekiwrpl78nqsmih8j8a.jpg


https://crisisofdemocracticstates.blogspot.fi/

http://crisisofdemocracticstates.blogspot.fi/p/the-thinking-about-alien-invasion-what.html