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Happy 30th Birthday, Pioneer 10

Posted by timothy on from the not-yet-over-the-hill dept.

tlon writes: "Pioneer 10, the spacecraft that brought us the first pictures of Jupiter, turned 30 today. Launched in 1972, the probe is now some 7.4 billion miles away, as it cruises out towards Aldebaran, the eye of Taurus. NASA will attempt to contact the spacecraft today, (it was successfully contacted last year), but the round trip time is over 22 hours. How's that for a ping latency? See Nasa's Pioneer 10 Page for more details."

15 of 170 comments (clear)

  1. Ping. by saintlupus · · Score: 4, Funny

    the round trip time is over 22 hours. How's that for a ping latency?

    Could be worse. They could be trying to get to it through @Home.

    --saint

    1. Re:Ping. by Waffle+Iron · · Score: 4, Funny
      Ping time don't bother me. My skillz are so 1337, I could dial in from that rocket and still rack up a couple dozen frags per game with the rail gun.

      Those poor sux0rs just wouldn't know they lost until the next day.

  2. Now that is engineering by ColGraff · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If they do actually manage to contact the probe, that would be very, very cool. They don't build 'em like this anymore, gentlemen - all you need to do to see that is look at the Mars probes. What's really goofy is how now, one of the farthest man-made objects from Earth is completely, mind-bogglingly obsolete from a computing standpoint.

    --
    I'm the stranger...posting to /.
    1. Re:Now that is engineering by Lumpy · · Score: 4, Insightful

      and that is another example of writing bug-free code. (something that programmers still claim cannot happen) That probe was built by some awesome engineers... with a awesome budget...

      --
      Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
  3. google cache by SevenTowers · · Score: 5, Informative

    here
    and
    here

    --
    Imperium et libertas
    Autocracy and freedom
  4. talk about clear reception.. by supernova87a · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The amazing thing is that the satellite is sending out a signal with as much power as maybe a watch battery, and we're receiving it from over 10^9 km away...

    Of course, the receiving dish is as big as a football field, but still.

  5. pioneer 10. by The+Hollow+Room · · Score: 5, Funny

    why contact it? Whats it going to say? Still dark. Still dark. Still dark.

  6. The reverse may apply, too by Rob+Cebollero · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Imagine if one day we *do* see an extraterrestrial probe land here. As far advanced as it will appear to us, it may only be an ancient relic of its creating civilisation.

    --
    Decentralization: the brief interval between the decline of one centralized regime and rise of another.
  7. Re:I have an idea by cperciva · · Score: 5, Informative

    Two major problems:

    First, hardware fails occasionally. The probes would have to be able to send their signals back at least two hops in order to avoid having one failed probe "orphan" many others.

    Second, the trajectories rely upon a particular alignment of planets. If we sent out probes year after year, they'd end up going in completely different directions.

    --
    Tarsnap: Online backups for the truly paranoid
  8. Re:It's going where? by toxcspdrmn · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yes - but we only found out about that in 1977 - 5 years after Pioneer was launched.

    --
    "E pur si muove!" - attributed to Galileo Galilei, 1564-1642
  9. Re:Speed of light is too slow. by PyroMosh · · Score: 4, Funny

    DH - No, no, no, Light speed's too slow!
    CS - Light speed to slow?
    DH - That's right we'll have to go straight to Ludacrious Speed!
    CS - <shock> Ludacrious speed! Sir, we've never gone that fast before!
    DH - WHAT's THE MATTER COLONEL SANDERS?!? CHICKEN?!?
    CS - <voice cracking> Prepare ship! </voice cracking>Perpare ship for Ludacrious speed! Close all shops in the mall, secure all animals in the zoo! Cancel the three ring circus!
    DH - <grabbing microphone> Give me that you petty excuse for an officer! Now hear this! Ludacrious speed!
    CS - Sir, you better buckle up!
    DH - Awww, bucke this! Ludacrious speed! GO!
    ****************

    What's truly sad is it's all from memory...

    --
    Touch everywhere, even when inappropriate.
  10. Say in a hundred years... by Vishniac · · Score: 4, Interesting
    ...we invent faster-than-light travel. Should we go out there and collect Pioneer 10 and the Voyager probes and everything else we've launched and put them in a museum for posterity? Or should we let them continue to drift through space, humanity's silent ambassadors to the stars?

    Just a question.

  11. Scene from a future alien press conference... by Robber+Baron · · Score: 4, Funny

    In what has proven to be one of the most sensational discoveries in recent times, scientists have announced that they have discovered a probe originating from a far away alien race. This probe contains a plaque containing a mysterious cryptic message. We go live to an update from the scientific team studying the probe...

    "After much careful studying of the plaque and it's contents we believe we have determined the approximate nature of the message it contains..."

    "It says: Get your free porn here!"

    --

    You're using her as bait, Master!

  12. So what's in the ping? Top 10: by phloda · · Score: 4, Funny

    1. Are wethere yet?
    2. Are we there yet
    3. Arewe there yet?
    4. Arewe there yet?
    5. Are we there yet?
    6. Arewe there yet?
    7. Are we there yet?
    8. Are wethere yet?
    9. Are we there yet?
    10. Are we there yet?

  13. Contact made! by Gogo+Dodo · · Score: 5, Informative

    Pioneer 10 has responded!