How is Voyager still alive? #universe #space #astronomy #blackhole

Added: 2026-05-01

[00:00:00]In 1977, humanity launched a machine that is now over 24 billion km away, and it still talks to Earth. Voyager 1 is the farthest humanmade object ever built. So, how is it still alive? It runs on a nuclear battery powered by decaying plutonium because sunlight is far too weak in deep space. Its transmitter sends only 23 watts, weaker than a household light bulb. Yet NASA still hears it through giant deep space network antennas. Its signals take over 22 hours just to reach us. Meaning every message we receive is a whisper from nearly a day ago. Using gravity assists from Jupiter and Saturn, Voyager gained enough speed to escape the solar system.

[00:00:41]And on board it carries the golden record, music, sounds, and voices from Earth. A message for any intelligence that may one day find it. Voyager isn't just a spacecraft. It is humanity's voice drifting forever between the stars.