Nasa switches off instrument on Voyager 2 spacecraft to save power – Times of India

NASA recently powered down another scientific instrument on the Voyager 2 spacecraft to conserve power. The plasma science instrument, which measures the flow of charged atoms, was switched off in late September. This decision was made to ensure that the spacecraft can continue exploring for as long as possible, potentially into the 2030s. Voyager 2, along with its twin Voyager 1, have had instruments turned off since the 1980s after exploring gas giant planets. Currently in interstellar space, Voyager 2 will continue collecting data on magnetic fields and particles in its mission to study the space beyond the sun’s protective bubble. Launched in 1977, Voyager 2 is the only spacecraft to have visited Uranus and Neptune and is now more than 12 billion miles from Earth.