Voyager
Subtitle: seeking newer worlds in the third great age of discovery
By: Stephen J. Pyne.
Publisher: Viking
Published: 2010
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 444
ISBN-13: 9780670021833
Description: A new account of the Voyager space program--its history, scientific impact, and cultural legacy. Launched in 1977, the two unmanned Voyager spacecraft have completed their Grand Tour to the four outer planets, and they are now on course to become the first man-made objects to exit our solar system. To many, this remarkable achievement is the culmination of a golden age of American planetary exploration, begun in the wake of the 1957 Sputnik launch. More than this, Voyager may be one of the purest expressions of exploration in human history. For more than five hundred years the West has been powered by the impulse to explore, to push into a wider world. In this highly original book, Stephen Pyne recasts Voyager in the tradition of Magellan, Columbus, Cook, Lewis and Clark, and other landmark explorers.--From publisher description.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [419]-425) and index.
Table of contents: title: Mission statement : Voyager of discovery; title: pt. 1. The beginning of beyond : journey of an idea; title: Escape velocity; title: Grand tour; title: Great ages of discovery; title: Voyager; title: Launch; title: pt. 2. Beyond the sunset : journey across the solar system; title: Beyond Earth; title: New moon; title: Cruise; title: Missing Mars; title: Beyond the inner planets; title: Cruise; title: encounter : asteroid belt; title: Cruise; title: Encounter : Jupiter; title: Cruise; title: Encounter : Saturn; title: Cruise; title: Encounter : Uranus; title: Cruise; title: Encounter : Neptune; title: Cruise; title: Last light; title: pt. 3. Beyond the utmost bond : journey to the stars; title: Beyond bow shock; title: Voyager Interstellar Mission; title: Far travelers; title: New worlds, new laws; title: Beyond narrative; title: Voyager's voice; title: Voyager's record; title: Voyager's returns; title: Beyond tomorrow; title: Afterword; title: Appendix : Chronology of major lunar and planetary missions; title: Status of Voyagers (August 2009); title: The grand tour and its encounters; title: The coldest war.