NASA’s Voyager 1 to hit new space distance record of one light-day

Voyager 1 is expected to become the first human-made object to travel one light-day from Earth, marking a new distance record for a spacecraft. The milestone highlights the probe’s longevity: launched in 1977, it is still sending scientific readings from interstellar space.

On Wednesday, Voyager 1 is due to have travelled at least 16 billion miles, the distance light covers in 24 hours. It moves at about 36,000 miles per hour and is expected to take 18,000 years to travel one light-year; its twin, Voyager 2, is projected to reach the one-light-day mark in 2035. NASA engineers maintain both probes with commands sent roughly weekly, though Voyager 1 briefly lost contact in October and the cause remains unknown.