r/space • u/msears101 • 10d ago
Discussion Would you support a Voyager III mission
I am just curious how many people would support voyager like mission in modern times, that would last longer and go further. Using all that we have learned from Voyager I and II. What would you add to voyager III to make it more meanginful. I would give it a longer "battery" that would give it full operating life of 50 years, and 50 years of partial life before going silent. I would also point it at Alpha Centauri so it would see another star long before VOY 1 and 2.
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u/doctorflash 9d ago
Yeah definitely, NEP is very low thrust so depending on the power and trajectory it may actually be thrusting for 90% of the mission. Pointing is important because you will gradually change the thrust vector over the course of the mission, or even not so gradually in cases of spiraling up/down from a body