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Actually that's pretty unlikely - Earth will last longer than Voyager. The Sun becoming a red giant is the risk for Earth. We're talking 5 billion years here.
by ars 2y ago
Actually that's pretty unlikely - Earth will last longer than Voyager. The Sun becoming a red giant is the risk for Earth. We're talking 5 billion years here.
But the voyagers have interstellar particles and dust to contend with, 5 billion years of abrasion from particles will wear them away to nothing.
On top of that they will eventually come near a random star which will eat them, or at least damage them. For example in 40,000 years they'll come pretty near some stars. In 5 billion years? Lots of stars.
Earth will easily outlive them.
- ChocolateGod 2y ago> come near a random star which will eat them Not a physicist, but I thought this didn't really happen in orbital mechanics, instead they'll just orbit said star.
- wkat4242 2y agoDepends on their relative speed and angle.
- ars 2y agoIf they are far enough away from the star that's correct. i.e. if the star was a point source. But if they get close they'll slow down by interaction with the atmosphere of the star. Which is more likely than random chance because the star is attracting them.