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by megablast 1831 days ago
> Voyager 1 is 152 AU away

Hmmm, can we make 11au?? I think so.

2 comments

This is not a ridiculous question and does not deserve a mean answer.

Voyager 1 has been flying for over 43 years [0]. In that time it went over 150 AU. This averages about 3.5 AU/year. It took, from start of project to launch, about 5 years (1972 - 1977 [1]).

If this body is going to be 11 AU away in 10 years away we'd need to move at an average 2.2 AU/year and hit the right launch windows.

I think that it falls into the "yes, it's possible" but not into the "of course it's possible, how could you even ask" category.

[0] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_1

[1] - https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/timeline/#event-voyager...

The question isn’t can we make 11au. That’s facile. Can we make 11au at the exact velocity, location, etc etc etc?