This month marks the 35th anniversary when Voyager 1 first came close to Saturn. The space probe provided photographs and detailed information about the ringed planet as it maneuvered as close as 77,000 miles to the planet's surface.
Scientists at NASA were able to receive its first-ever pictures of Saturn courtesy of the little spacecraft known as Voyager 1. The space probe, equipped with an array of scientific instruments, arrived in the ringed planet's vicinity on November 1980. It sent back pictures and information of Saturn's rings and atmosphere as well as other features of the planet.
Voyager 1 came as close as 77,000 miles from Saturn's surface where it measured 1,100 miles per hour of gustiness on the ringed planet. Also, the space probe provided the first best images of the ringed planet's moon known as Titan.
The space probe came as close as 4,000 miles to Titan's surface where it made distinct assessments of the moon's density and composition. The probe has also proven that the moon had its own atmosphere.
During Voyager 1's Saturn expedition, four other moons were also captured by the probe's cameras that provided the best images at that time of the discoveries' varying surfaces. Moreover, the probe gathered information about the Rings of Saturn and discovered an unknown ring that encircles the ringed planet.
Voyager 1's mission to Saturn is already over, but the probe continued to orbit in space and is still active. It will continue to send pictures and information to NASA for at least another 10 years, at which time its thermoelectric radioisotope generators will finally run out.
The space probe's twin, Voyager 2, is exploring Neptune and Uranus. It also gave enhanced understandings of the two planets' detail and information. Likewise, it remains active and will soon hit the depths of space.
NASA has anticipated a long life for the Voyager twins. The space administration even provided it with 'Golden Records' that consisted of gold-plated audiovisuals about the Earth in the hopes of other civilizations in outer space.
