NASA is keeping Voyager 2 going until at least 2026 by tapping into backup power

Artist's concept of NASA's Voyager spacecraft. After the Voyager 1 and its replica Voyager 2 launched in 1977, their power sources are slowly dying. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)

NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft, which has been probing the outer bounds of the solar system for over 45 years, is running out of power. But a new plan aims to keep its interstellar mission alive for at least three more years.

The Voyager 2, first launched in 1977, has been helping scientists investigate faraway planets and understand how the heliosphere — the sun's outermost atmospheric bubble-like layer that traps particles and magnetic fields — protects Earth from its volatile interstellar environment.