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List of artificial objects leaving the Solar System

Updated: Wikipedia source

List of artificial objects leaving the Solar System

Several space probes and the upper stages of their launch vehicles are leaving the Solar System, all of which were launched by NASA. Three of the probes, Voyager 1, Voyager 2, and New Horizons, are still functioning and are regularly contacted by radio communication, while Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11 are now derelict. In addition to these spacecraft, some upper stages and de-spin weights are leaving the Solar System, assuming they continue on their trajectories. These objects are leaving the Solar System because their velocity and direction are taking them away from the Sun, and at their distance from the Sun, its gravitational pull is not sufficient to pull these objects back or into orbit. They are not impervious to the gravitational pull of the Sun and are being slowed, but are still traveling in excess of escape velocity to leave the Solar System and coast into interstellar space.

Tables

· Speed and distance from the Sun
Voyager 1
Voyager 1
Name
Voyager 1
Launched
1977-09
Contact lost(as of 2025)
-
Distance from the Sun (AU)(as of 2025)
167.671
Speed (km/s)
16.9
Voyager 2
Voyager 2
Name
Voyager 2
Launched
1977-08
Contact lost(as of 2025)
-
Distance from the Sun (AU)(as of 2025)
140.241
Speed (km/s)
15.2
Pioneer 10
Pioneer 10
Name
Pioneer 10
Launched
1972
Contact lost(as of 2025)
2003
Distance from the Sun (AU)(as of 2025)
138.959
Speed (km/s)
11.8
Pioneer 11
Pioneer 11
Name
Pioneer 11
Launched
1973
Contact lost(as of 2025)
1995
Distance from the Sun (AU)(as of 2025)
116.556
Speed (km/s)
11.1
New Horizons
New Horizons
Name
New Horizons
Launched
2006
Contact lost(as of 2025)
-
Distance from the Sun (AU)(as of 2025)
62.233
Speed (km/s)
13.6
Name
Launched
Contact lost(as of 2025)
Distance from the Sun (AU)(as of 2025)
Speed (km/s)
Voyager 1
1977-09
-
167.671
16.9
Voyager 2
1977-08
-
140.241
15.2
Pioneer 10
1972
2003
138.959
11.8
Pioneer 11
1973
1995
116.556
11.1
New Horizons
2006
-
62.233
13.6

References

  1. TheSkyLive.com
    https://theskylive.com/pioneer10-tracker
  2. TheSkyLive.com
    https://theskylive.com/pioneer11-tracker
  3. NASA
    https://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/missions/archive/pioneer.html
  4. BBC News
    https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-46502820
  5. "Voyager – Mission – Interstellar Mission"
    https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/interstellar.html
  6. The Astrophysical Journal Letters
    https://doi.org/10.3847%2F2041-8213%2Fac816a
  7. CBS News
    https://www.cbsnews.com/news/voyager-1-finally-crosses-into-interstellar-space/
  8. Astronomy Letters
    https://arxiv.org/abs/1003.2160
  9. "Interstellar Traveler: NASA's Voyager 1 Probe On 40,000-Year Trek to Distant Star"
    https://www.space.com/22783-voyager-1-interstellar-space-star-flyby.html
  10. "New Horizons Receives Mission Extension to Kuiper Belt, Dawn to Remain at Ceres"
    https://web.archive.org/web/20160820075642/http://www.nasa.gov/feature/new-horizons-receives-mission-extension-to-kuiper-belt-dawn-to-remain-at-ceres/
  11. NASA
    http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/News-Article.php?page=20210415
  12. nasaspaceflight.com
    http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2011/08/thirty-four-years-voyager-2-continues-explore/
  13. Nothing More Powerful
    http://nothingmorepowerful.blogspot.com/2017/12/when-voyagers-passed-pioneers.html
  14. Jet Propulsion Laboratory
    https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/fastfacts.html
  15. "Voyager 1 has left the Solar System. Will we ever overtake it?"
    https://bigthink.com/starts-with-a-bang/voyager-1-solar-system/
  16. Jet Propulsion Laboratory
    https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/where/
  17. Heavens Above
    https://www.heavens-above.com/SolarEscape.aspx
  18. NASA
    https://web.archive.org/web/20220822023913/https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-new-horizons-reaches-a-rare-space-milestone
  19. www.qrg.northwestern.edu
    http://www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/vss/docs/space-environment/2-whats-escape-velocity.html
  20. www.wolframalpha.com
    https://www.wolframalpha.com/
  21. "WikiHow: How to Calculate Escape Velocity"
    https://www.wikihow.com/Calculate-Escape-Velocity
  22. NASA
    https://web.archive.org/web/20170713041117/https://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/about/history/pioneer.html
  23. stackexchange.com
    http://space.stackexchange.com/questions/1940/where-are-the-upper-stages-for-the-voyager-pioneer-stages.html
  24. Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
    http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/News-Article.php?page=20101028
  25. unmannedspaceflight.com
    http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=2079&view=findpost&p=37667
  26. Space.com
    http://www.space.com/1991-derelict-booster-beat-pluto-probe-jupiter.html
  27. weebau.com
    http://weebau.com/satplan/new%20horizons.htm
  28. johnstonsarchive.net
    http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/astro/awrjp493.html
  29. Scientific American
    https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/life-unbounded/the-fastest-spacecraft-ever/
  30. "First Mission to Pluto: The Difficult Birth of New Horizons"
    https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/first-mission-pluto-difficult-birth-new-horizons
  31. "New Horizons: Mission Overview"
    https://web.archive.org/web/20160909024832/http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/Mission/The-Path-to-Pluto/FINAL-PLUTO_MO.pdf
  32. https://usspaceobjectsregistry.state.gov/Lists/SpaceObjects/DispFormaspx?ID=3348.html[permanent dead link]
    https://usspaceobjectsregistry.state.gov/Lists/SpaceObjects/DispFormaspx?ID=3348.html
  33. Time
    https://web.archive.org/web/20081222014522/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,926062,00.html
  34. Research Notes of the American Astronomical Society
    https://doi.org/10.3847%2F2515-5172%2Fab158e
  35. Phys.org
    https://phys.org/news/2019-12-spacecraft-star.amp
  36. Reuters
    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-space-solar-idINTRE5600A220090701
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