We have an innate desire to explore. If we look at our history as a species, that seems to be consistently true from the very beginning. But the frontier of space presents a distinct challenge from previous frontiers — it is simply SO large. Large enough, in fact, that for the first time in the history of exploration, we cannot be the pioneers ourselves. Instead, we must send machines in our place, like Voyagers 1 and 2. These probes have flown by Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. But, even more than that, they kept going. Voyager 1 is now over 15 billion miles from Earth. It is, in fact, the most distant human made object from our planet ever achieved. The funny part is, this truly incredible distance is just so small. Scientists believe that Voyager 1 will reach the inner edge of the Oort Cloud, how we might define the outer edge of just our solar system, in 300 years. Just let that sink in.
Our Universe is huge. But with human ingenuity, and stubborn determination, we just might be able to make a dent. Let’s keep exploring.
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