[xattt]

> the cameras were turned off to save power and memory

Since it’s powered by an RTG, how does the power get “used up”? I assume that this refers to the available power budget at a given moment versus some sort of expendable power reserve.

[8bitsrule]

It's the first question at the top of that ^ FAQ page. One of their comments is : "Mission managers removed the software from both spacecraft that controls the camera." Makes me wonder if that unused RAM came in handy lately!

[wkat4242]

It's radioactive so the half-life has a serious effect. Its half-life is 87 years so it's not even used up one. I guess it wasn't really very overdimensioned. But it wasn't meant to last this long.

[Yossarrian22]

Probably a physical relay to deal with parasitic power draw

[xcv123]

Yes the power budget is decreasing as the generator output decreases over time.