Voyager spacecraft face a significant probability of collision with interstellar matter
the verdict
REFUTED
the evidence says no
refutedsupported
the weight of evidence
0 sources for · 2 against
AS REPORTEDno primary record reached; this is what the reporting says
Retrieved expert discussions indicate that the Voyager probes are traveling through regions of space that are virtually devoid of matter and that the vast distances between stars render the probability of collisions with interstellar matter extremely low.
What is the probability that Voyager 1 or 2 will hit a planet or star? | New Scientist
If they continue on their current trajectories, what is the probability Voyager 1 or 2 will crash into a planet or star in the (distant) future?
Mark Thompson Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, UK
Both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 have reached interstellar space. Currently, Voyager 1 is located 23 billion kilometres from Earth, while Voyager 2 has made it to a distance of 19 billion kilometres.
Since both have already passed by the planets in our solar system, they aren’t expected to crash into a planet or star for some time. However, the trajectories of the probes are influenced by the gravitational forces of the stars they pass, which could cause them to change direction.
For now, Voyager 1 is moving in the general direction of the constellation Ophiuchus, while Voyager 2 is heading towards Sagittarius. Still, the vast distances between stars mean the probes are unlikely to approach any specific star system for tens of thousands of years.
Both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 are powered by radioisotope thermoelectric generators, which convert the heat generated by the decay of plutonium-238 into electricity
# What is the possibility of Voyager 1/2 colliding with matter (Asteroids or planetoids) present in space?
Tags: asteroid, voyager, collision-avoidance
- Score: 11
- Views: 5390
- Answers: 2
- Answered: yes
- Asked by: bluelurker (221 rep)
- Asked: 2014-07-28
- Edited: 2014-07-28
- Site: space
## Question
It gives me great pleasure to hear about the feat that Voyager 1 achieved. I was wondering if Voyager 1/2 could collide with Asteroids (those,if present, outside our solar system) or any other matter present in its way. Did NASA know exactly what path was Voyager going to follow and the possible collisions it could encounter in its journey till date? Could there be any unforeseen object in its path?
## Answers
### Answer by Rikki-Tikki-Tavi (score: 23 [ACCEPTED])
The Voyager probes are outside the Kuiper belt now, and have a very long way to go before entering the Oort cloud. They are now in a place that is almost completely devoid of matter. Or at least I couldn't find any estimates as to how dense the solar system is there.
But what about when they where still in the Kuiper belt?
If Wikipedia is to be believed, the Kuiper belt has a mass of about 4.59*10^23kg and is mo
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