Online Public Relations Thoughts

When one talks of space communications, inevitably conversation gets around to Voyager 1 and 2, two spacecraft 46 years in longevity and billions of miles from earth.  They have flown farther than any other man-made object and they have extended their missions by decades.  They are unparalleled successes for NASA.  Voyager 1 has gone incommunicado for the time being and engineers are working to get it talking again.  If they succeed, its mission will continue.  If they fail, they will conclude its deep space time in triumph and will focus on Voyager 2. It is worth remembering that neither spacecraft has come close to another solar system, which are light years away.  The two spacecraft are reminders of the vastness of the universe and man's inability to explore it with boots on the ground.  We are alone for all practical purposes on a fragile planet that is heating up to dangerous levels.  Will we learn in time to protect it?