Interstellar probe

Article summary

An interstellar probe is a space probe that has left—or is expected to leave—the Solar System and enter interstellar space, which is typically defined as the region beyond the heliopause. It also refers to probes capable of reaching other star systems. there are five interstellar probes, all launched by the American space agency NASA: Voyager 1, Voyager 2, Pioneer 10, Pioneer 11 and New Horizons. Also Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 are the only probes to have actually reached interstellar space. The other three are on interstellar trajectories. Contact to Pioneer 10 and 11 was lost long before they reached interstellar space. The termination shock is the point in the heliosphere where the solar wind slows down to subsonic speed. In this context, sonic refers to the speed of sound in a plasma like that found in interstellar space. Calculating the speed of sound in interstellar space is complex due to high variation in density which is coupled to other plasma physics parameters. In rough and relatable magnitudes, sonic speed in interstellar space is around 225,000 miles/hour. In comparison, the speed of sound (in air) at sea level on earth is around 767 miles/hour. Even though the termination shock happens as close as 80–100 AU (astronomical units) the maximum extent of the region in which the Sun's gravitational field is dominant (the Hill sphere) is thought to be at around .…

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