After five months of communication problems, NASA engineers finally received data readings from Voyager 1 thanks to an initiative to address the issues on the spacecraft, which is the farthest from Earth. On April 20, Voyager 1 provided an update on its operating status after months of difficulties. While it has not yet sent back scientific data, it is now transmitting meaningful information about its technical systems to ground control.
On November 14, 2023, Voyager 1, 24 billion km from Earth and exploring interstellar space for 11 years, experienced issues with its binary code communication with the control team at NASA. In March 2024, engineers sent a digital signal to Voyager 1, prompting a response from its flight data subsystem (FDS). It was discovered that a corrupted code on a chip responsible for 3% of FDS memory was causing the persistent glitch, rendering the spacecraft’s data unusable.
Although the chip cannot be directly repaired or replaced, the team at NASA was able to move the affected code to a different location in FDS memory by dividing it into chunks and storing them separately. This meticulous process involved adjusting storage components to ensure the broken code did not interfere with other systems. The team also updated references to the location of the failed code.
On April 18, 2024, the team began sending the code to its new location in FDS memory. Despite the 22.5-hour delay in communication between Earth and Voyager 1, the team confirmed on April 20 that the edit was successful. Scientists were able to contact Voyager 1 and monitor its status, allowing them to work on restoring the FDS software responsible for handling scientific data.
After 37 years since its launch in 1977, Voyager 1 became the first artificial object to leave the solar system and enter interstellar space. Voyager 2 followed six years later in 2018. Both spacecraft continue to function well and communicate with Earth, making them the only man-made objects exploring space beyond the Sun’s influence.