NASA begins switching off Voyager instruments after almost 45 years

[Fox God Records]

So, has aliens found the Golden Record yet...?!

That won't be until the 2200s. We'll know for certain once V-GER is finally detected in the early-to-mid 2270s.

 

[Endymio]

And so what if they do? It's their constitutional right to do so.

Oops! Did you miss the part about their being arrested for attempting to break into the facility and physically prevent the launch? That is not a constitutional right.

Furthermore, your goalpost-moving attempt is noted. Excluding the arrests at NASA itself, the many lawsuits from environmentalist groups did affect many deep-space missions. It was a major factor in the reason several NASA Mars rovers were solar-powered, despite the fact that the extra weight and lower power-budget of the solar cells dramatically constrained the mission parameters (and in fact, in the case of the Opportunity and Spirit rovers, eventually ended the missions, due to lack of power from dust-covered panels or solar occlusion.)

And environmentalists didn't simply limit their attentions to NASA, of course:

Mar 3: 1990 -- ANTINUCLEAR protesters are planning a campaign to stop the
October launch of a European spacecraft to study the Sun. The protesters
claim that the spacecraft’s nuclear-powered motors could become a major
hazard in the event of an accident during liftoff. They have already taken
the first legal steps to prevent the launch, and are planning a series of
demonstrations in support of their demands.

Last year, NASA successfully fought off a legal attempt by the same
groups to prevent the launch of the Galileo spacecraft, currently on its
way to Jupiter. This carries two nuclear reactors of the same design as
the one on board Ulysses (This Week, 23 September 1989). A court allowed
NASA to go ahead with the launch. Now, the protesters have found a way to
continue their fight in a way that would also affect Ulysses...

 

[wiyosaya]

Oops! Did you miss the part about their being arrested for attempting to break into the facility and physically prevent the launch? That is not a constitutional right.

Tell me what the outcome of the trial was?

Furthermore, your goalpost-moving attempt is noted.

You mean like you constantly move the goal posts?

Excluding the arrests at NASA itself, the many lawsuits from environmentalist groups did affect many deep-space missions. It was a major factor in the reason several NASA Mars rovers were solar-powered, despite the fact that the extra weight and lower power-budget of the solar cells dramatically constrained the mission parameters (and in fact, in the case of the Opportunity and Spirit rovers, eventually ended the missions, due to lack of power from dust-covered panels or solar occlusion.)

Awww- Poor NASA. Especially since the rovers were some of the most successful Mars missions yet. Maybe if NASA decided to take it to court, things might have turned out differently. Or did they?

They took the issue to court on Cassini and won.

And environmentalists didn't simply limit their attentions to NASA, of course:

Mar 3: 1990 -- ANTINUCLEAR protesters are planning a campaign to stop the
October launch of a European spacecraft to study the Sun. The protesters
claim that the spacecraft’s nuclear-powered motors could become a major
hazard in the event of an accident during liftoff. They have already taken
the first legal steps to prevent the launch, and are planning a series of
demonstrations in support of their demands.

OMG - that happend in 1990 - so your point is? Did they stop it or are you just exercising your unreasonable fear that environmentalists are hampering science?

Last year, NASA successfully fought off a legal attempt by the same
groups to prevent the launch of the Galileo spacecraft, currently on its
way to Jupiter. This carries two nuclear reactors of the same design as
the one on board Ulysses (This Week, 23 September 1989). A court allowed
NASA to go ahead with the launch. Now, the protesters have found a way to
continue their fight in a way that would also affect Ulysses...

Hmmm. So did the protesters get arrested this time, or did they exercise their constitutional rights in a manner that was suitable to you?