The Most Distant Human-Made Object
Voyager 1 is the most distant human-made object, over 24 billion kilometres from Earth and still transmitting.
Also known as: Farthest spacecraft from Earth
Launched in 1977, Voyager 1 is the farthest human-made object from Earth and the first to cross into interstellar space in 2012.
What it is
The most distant human-made object is Voyager 1, a NASA space probe launched on 5 September 1977. It is now more than 24 billion kilometres (over 160 astronomical units) from Earth and recedes at about 17 km per second, the fastest of any outbound spacecraft.
In August 2012 Voyager 1 became the first human-made object to cross the heliopause and enter interstellar space, the region beyond the Sun's magnetic bubble. Its radio signals, travelling at the speed of light, now take more than 22 hours to reach Earth. It carries the Golden Record, a phonograph disc of sounds and images intended to represent life on Earth to any intelligence that might one day find it.
Its twin, Voyager 2, is the only spacecraft to have visited all four giant planets and is the second most distant human-made object.
Related entries
Sources & further reading
- Voyager — Mission Status — NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (article)