Trajectory of Voyager 1 Through the Saturnian System
Two Weeks After Its Launch From the ...
Voyager 1, launched on September 5, 1977, began its historic journey through the Saturnian system on November 12, 1980. Two weeks after its launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, Voyager 1 had already traveled over 1 million miles and was approaching the asteroid belt.
As Voyager 1 approached Saturn, it began to send back stunning images of the planet and its rings. On November 13, 1980, Voyager 1 made its closest approach to Saturn, passing within 100,000 miles of the planet's cloud tops. The spacecraft's cameras captured detailed images of Saturn's atmosphere, rings, and moons.
After completing its flyby of Saturn, Voyager 1 continued on its journey into the outer solar system. The spacecraft has now traveled over 11 billion miles from Earth and is the farthest human-made object from our planet. Voyager 1 is still sending back valuable data about the outer solar system, and it is expected to continue to do so for many years to come.
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