Voyager 2

Despite ongoing data analysis, initial observations indicate Voyager 1 is functioning well

Over the next months, scientists at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab will try a variety of different approaches to get Voyager 1 back to doing science

NASA's distant Voyager 2 probe has sent a "heartbeat" signal to Earth after mission control mistakenly cut contact, the U.S. space agency said Tuesday Aug. 1.

Launched in 1977 to explore the outer planets and serve as a beacon of humanity to the wider universe, it is currently more than 12.3 billion miles (19.9 billion kilometers) from our planet - well beyond the solar system.

 Voyager 2 has passed an incredible milestone in its journey to explore the solar system by entering interstellar space, but neither its travels nor its science are ending any time soon, reports Space.com

As we talk about humans returning to the moon and the Trump administration forming the Space Force, it's easy to think about the less-sexy bodies in the solar system, particularly Neptune and Uranus. But a group at NASA aims to change that, with plans to send probes to the planets to learn more about their compositions in the 2030s.

NASA's Voyager 2 probe, currently on a journey toward interstellar space, has detected an increase in cosmic rays that originate outside our solar system. Launched in 1977, Voyager 2 is a little less than 11 billion miles (about 17.7 billion kilometers) from Earth, or more than 118 times the distance from Earth to the Sun.

Artist's concept of Voyager in flight.

BELGRADE - NASA's ground-breaking voyager 2 probe is more than 3 decades into its epic journey towards deep space. On April 22nd, 2010 just as the craft prepares to cross the boundary to enter into interstellar space, it malfunctions, physics-astronomy.com reported.

As NASA's planetary scientist, Kevin Baines said: