The Voyager 1 spacecraft set a new record last Tuesday. But there was no cheering crowd or gold medal for the hardworking craft. It sped to victory on the cold, dark, silent edge of the solar system. Voyager 1 is now more than 6.5 billion miles away. Nothing else that Earthlings have sent into space has ever traveled so far.
Since its launch in September 1977, Voyager 1 has swooped through the solar system, sending scientists information on Jupiter, Saturn and Saturn's moons. The nuclear-powered craft is still sending data about its surroundings. Voyager's signals take more than 9 1/2 hours to reach Earth. Voyager 1 and its twin, Voyager 2, may even travel out of the solar system. If all goes well, the Voyagers may not run out of power until 2020, when Voyager 1 will be 14 billion miles away.