Vygr is still going, unto the final frontier

[xortam]

The Voyager I spacecraft has moved into the solar system's final frontier, a vast area where the sun's influence gives way to interstellar space, NASA's Web site reports. ...


I'm so proud to have helped build this spacecraft. It amazes me that it's still intact and providing us with important data. It's really exciting to see the fruits of your labor over the decades.

[Dr Mordrid]

Don't you mean V'ger?

That puppy is still doing science too.

Those were the good 'ole NASA days....which unfortunately have given way to a bunch of people with almost NO imagination.....

Dr. Mordrid

[xortam]

Don't you mean V'ger? ...

Did it say "V'ger"? I'd have to hunt down the movie to recheck. Maybe you're right as they wiped off the dust in the middle of the label to expose the full name so it might have appeared as "V ger". I recalled it as "V y ger". I suppose there's even a snapshot of that scene somewhere on the web. I'll have to do a Google some time.

[Jon P. Inghram]

[Wombat]

Don't you mean V'ger?

That puppy is still doing science too.

Those were the good 'ole NASA days....which unfortunately have given way to a bunch of people with almost NO imagination.....

Dr. Mordrid

No imagination, or no budget? Landing on Mars covered in airbags was pretty imaginative.

[xortam]

Thanks JPI ... I was confident someone would quickly follow through.

[Jon P. Inghram]

I'm so proud to have helped build this spacecraft.

That's pretty damn cool, what kind of work did you do with 'em?

[xortam]

I actually helped build quite a bit of the physical satellite. I was one of a handful of people who laid up the dish (graphite over aluminum honeycomb). That's right ... I recall now that I've got a picture of that somewhere around here. I also helped lay up the substrate (the main housing). I built the struts that hold up the magnetometer as well as several instrument brackets. I applied the thermistors to the interior of the substrate after it had it's solar cell array applied. This is where is I started using 200 proof alcohol as a solvent rather than MEK (phew!) and such. This latter assembly took place in a higher level clean room (can't recall the various clean room grades) with it's higher level of garb and solvents. I also helped build the first Mars lander, a Japanese communication satellite, some NATO satellites, and more. This was a summer job that I was able to go back to for three summers. Fun stuff and it put me through college.

[Jon P. Inghram]

Very cool!

[xortam]

[KvHagedorn]

Wow.. some awesome privilege of a summer job. Most people get stuck flipping burgers.

[xortam]

I had a good contact. ... My introduction to "networking". I also was an Explorer Scout that met at this company’s facilities. This where I first started computer programming … back around ’70-'71.

[KRSESQ]

Some people have all the fun.

Kevin

[xortam]

Some people have all the fun.

Kevin

Most everyone else was out "having fun" while I was working.

[Dr Mordrid]

Did it say "V'ger"? I'd have to hunt down the movie to recheck. Maybe you're right as they wiped off the dust in the middle of the label to expose the full name so it might have appeared as "V ger". I recalled it as "V y ger". I suppose there's even a snapshot of that scene somewhere on the web. I'll have to do a Google some time.

Have you checked the manned space flight program lately? It hasn't shown any real imagination since they cancelled Dyna Soar.

BTW: V'ger was the name of the returning "improved" Earth probe in Star Trek I....at least until someone scraped off the carbon covering the rest of its name

Trek trivia: ST-I was basically an update of the Classic Trek episode "The Changeling", in which the probes name was Nomad.

Dr. Mordrid