Voyager 1

Today we learned that Voyager 1 left our solar system. It has in fact been in intersteller space for more than a year. Voyager was launched 36 years ago and is currently on a mission to the nearest star. NASA says this will take 40,000 years.

When I first heard that this mission would take 40,000 years, I immediately thought "how disappointing." Head director, John Grunsfeld, has spent over 45 years on this insanely complicated machine and he will never see what his work will accomplish. Voyager only has enough juice to last till 2020, and then it turns into a piece of metal floating through space headed towards the nearest star.

I can't quite understand if this project seems american to me or not. On one hand America is leading the expedition into the unknown world. Americans take pride in the fact that we are exploring the final frontier. But on the other hand, in 40,000 years will there even be an american civilization. Will there be anyone who will remember that in 1976 we sent a hunk of junk into space? Will Voyager even be relevant in 40,000 years? It is sad to think that all this work is for nothing, but it's most likely that voyager will be smashed into a thousand little pieces by an asteroid long before it reaches its destination. But maybe Voyager is just a necessary step in learning more about the universe and beyond, and it is a very good sign that we are progressing beyond our own solar system.

What do you think this conquest into space says about America? Are missions like this worth it? Do you think we will discover anything life changing through Voyager? Is voyager a necessary step for further information in space?

read more: http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/13/opinion/urry-voyager-spacecraft/index.html?iref=allsearch
watch: http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/us/2013/09/14/lok-zarrella-voyager-has-left-the-building.cnn&iref=allsearch