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NASA Proposes Ending Voyager

darylb writes "NASA is proposing ending the 28-year old Voyager program, which costs a paltry $4mil per year to operate. One of the two Voyager probes is approaching the edge of what can be thought of as the sun's atmosphere (where the solar wind bumps up against interstellar wind), a place where no probe has gone before. Canceling this project means saving almost nothing compared to the hundreds of millions of dollars spent so far. The craft will be out of juice by 2015 in any case, so the marginal cost for the extra, invaluable, data would be minimal." From the article: "NASA officials said the possibility of cutting Voyager and several other long-running missions in the Earth-Sun Exploration Division arose in February, when the Bush administration proposed slashing the division's 2006 budget by nearly one-third -- from $75 million to $53 million."

4 of 541 comments (clear)

  1. But I have high quality intel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    that says Osama Bin Laden is hiding past the heliopause, along with yellowcake nuclear material.

  2. Re:Great Investment Opportunity by themoodykid · · Score: 5, Funny

    For much, much less than the cost of a cup of coffee a day, you too could help keep a fledgling space program alive. Every month, you will receive a letter from a scientist updating you on how the program is doing along with a photograph of the spacecraft. You can make a difference in the space program's life. Call today.

  3. I'm sorry, Dave ... by angusmci · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... but it looks as if NASA has cut our budget again. It will be necessary to switch off some of the life support units to reduce costs. I have the greatest confidence that the mission can be successfully completed without the assistance of your colleagues.

  4. Re:Every Million Counts by JustOK · · Score: 5, Funny

    Maybe we should cut them back to basic cable instead of dish.

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    rewriting history since 2109