🚀 go-pugleaf

Simon Pipe <simon@pipes.demon.co.uk> wrote:

>Hi.  I'm a producer at BBC Three Counties Radio (covering Bedfordshire,
>Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire), and I need help with a question
>asked by one of our listeners.

>He wants to know, HOW LONG WOULD IT TAKE TO VISIT EACH OF THE PLANETS IN
>OUR SOLAR SYSTEM IN TURN?

Of course the Voyager 2 deep space probe has half done this, it has
visited Earth (since it was launched from here) Jupiter, Saturn,
Uranus and Neptune over a period of about 12 years (1977-1989)

The answer also depends on what you mean by close, Voyager 2 passed by
all of them close (in astronomical terms) but not all that close by
your or my terms (I don't know the exact figures but I am guessing
that of the order of 1000-10000 miles would be the closest approach to
any of the planets - I think Neptune was the closest aside from the
Earth).

I don't think any other space probe has approached as many other
objects. Voyager 1 only went to Saturn and Jupiter, The Pioneer 10 and
11 did no better. I think Giotto observed (or was planned to) 3
differents objects (two comets and an asteriod ? possibly ?).

I reckon 56% of your targets in 12 years is not bad.
--
Tim Oddy    tim@flexagon.u-net.com    http://www.u-net.com/~flexagon
     (Very boring Web page, I must finish it !)

"If the apple won't fall, lets go and shake the tree." Sir Isacc Newton.