Voyager 1 launched in 1977 on a four-year mission. In November 2026 it becomes the first machine a full light-day from Earth — a 24-hour signal each way — kept alive by a small JPL team switching off heaters and reviving thrusters left dead for 20 years.
Voyager 1 launched in 1977 on a four-year mission to Jupiter and Saturn, and forty-nine years later, it is still flying, still transmitting, and still taking commands from more than 15 billion miles away. In late 2026, it will cross a line no machine... [13196 chars]