Wait for It: Voyager 1 Has Not Yet Left the Solar System

Found on Wired on Wednesday, 20 March 2013
Browse Astronomy

Launched more than 35 years ago, Voyager 1 is the most distant man-made object from Earth. After making an incredible tour of the outer planets of our solar system, the probe was directed on a course away from the sun and is now more than 18 billion kilometers from our world.

Voyager 1′s instruments have detected a drop in radiation levels and a spike in cosmic rays. Whether or not this means the probe is outside the solar system or simply in a new, previously undiscovered area remains to be seen.

It's still working, despite drifting through space for 35 years now. Thanks to planned obsolescence, this couldn't happen anymore with today's technology.