We morn another death...........
Pioneer 10 Spacecraft Falls Silent After Nearly 31 Years, Associated Press, February 26, 2003
Pioneer 10, the first spacecraft to venture out of the solar system, has fallen silent after traveling billions of miles from Earth on a mission that has lasted nearly 31 years. What was apparently the spacecraft's last signal was received January 22. At the time, Pioneer 10 was 7.6 billion miles from Earth. The signal, traveling at the speed of light, took 11 hours and 20 minutes to arrive. Pioneer 10 was launched March 2, 1972, on a 21-month mission. It became the first spacecraft to pass through the asteroid belt and the first to obtain close-up images of Jupiter. In 1983, it became the first manmade object to leave the solar system when it passed the orbit of distant Pluto. Pioneer 10 carries a gold plaque engraved with a message of goodwill and a map showing the Earth's location in the solar system. The spacecraft continues to coast toward the star Aldebaran in the constellation Taurus. It will take 2 million years to reach it. |
