Launch of Voyager 1

NASA launched the Voyager 1 probe on September 5, 1977, at 12:56:01 UT, from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral, Florida, aboard a Titan IIIE-Centaur. It left after its twin, Voyager 2, but a faster trajectory let it overtake it on December 15, 1977.

Its journey included two major encounters: closest approach to Jupiter on March 5, 1979, and to Saturn on November 12, 1980. On board it carries the Golden Record, a gold-plated copper disc with greetings in 55 languages, 90 minutes of music, 35 sounds of Earth and 115 images.

In August 2012 it became the first human-made object to cross the heliopause and enter interstellar space. From 40 astronomical units away it photographed Earth in the famous Pale Blue Dot image. It remains active on an extended mission: on August 21, 2024, it was 164.7 astronomical units from Earth.