"Uptime 15,364 days - The Computers of Voyager" by Aaron Cummings
341,653
Published 2019-09-14
This talk explores the computing systems of Voyager - the systems which enable remote control of the spacecraft, and provide for the recording and return of data to Earth. These systems have proved to be both adaptable, durable, and resilient in support of a scientific undertaking now in it's fifth decade.
What can we learn from the engineering of Voyager's computing systems? Why have they survived for so long in the harsh environment of space? What is involved in patching a system from a billion miles away? And what does the future hold?
Aaron Cummings
@btvaaron
Aaron Cummings is a software developer working in the semiconductor industry, currently leading a team working on tools for building and testing embedded memories. He has had a long term fascination with the space program, and has been interested in Voyager since seeing the pictures returned from Jupiter and Saturn in the 1980s.
Chapter listing
00:00 Background on Voyager
01:16 Talk outline
02:00 About the speaker
02:25 Origins of Voyager
03:18 Initial requirements
08:25 Revised program
10:05 The 3 R's
11:08 Probe design
12:55 Command Computer System
17:40 Attitude and Articulation Control System
20:04 Flight Data System
23:56 Voyager 0
24:35 Voyager 2 mission
29:07 Sustaining power
30:26 The golden record
31:20 Q&A
All Comments (21)
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Brings back memories. I was on the mission control team (data systems engineer, DSE) for the 1st 3 encounters, and my duties were to monitor the CCS, FDS and AACS in real time. Best job I ever had. I went on the be a mission controller for Magellan and Galileo. Nice talk.
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Voyager has been flying for 2/3 of the entire space age, it launched 20 years after Sputnik and now it is 62 years after Sputnik. In 500 years it will be remembered like Magellan's circumnavigation is remembered today. The Great Mission of it's generation.
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Thank you SO MUCH for first repeating the first few questions before answering them. Speakers need to remember that the audience is not mic'd, and it's often difficult to discern the question from just the answer.
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This is an excellent lecture. Not everybody cares about all these details, but for those of us who do this was terrific. Kudos!
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It's amazing that humans can actually build something so delicate that'll last this long being operational without direct maintenance. Simplicity and redundance.
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Imagine being such an unaffiliated fan of a space mission that you get to deliver a conference talk about it. Super cool :)
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Thanks, Aaron, very nice. I recently worked with a guy who had the job of testing one type of the Voyager uplink RF bandpass filters, and he found that they would not have survived the vibration on launch. He then personally participated in potting and testing both filters that flew, and his initials are scribed into the test certification stamps on the sides of the actual V1 and V2 uplink bandpass filters. So my friends initials are enshrined on some actual flight hardware, outside the solar system. Pretty neat nerd stuff, eh? Again, thanks for your presentation!
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I’d love to see a Voyager 2.0 series of missions. High definition sensors, modern computation and the ability to last 1000’s of years. Then send it to Proxima B.
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For being "just a guy", you did a very nice job. Thanks for the very informative presentation, I liked it a lot.
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11 KHz clock, 32 interrupts, 64 instructions set, 9 Mb of memory, 62 Mb hard drive. Amazing how far we've come.
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Remarkable and amazing they are still sending back data after 43 years in the hostile frigid vacuum. What a testament to the brilliant engineers of that era and the people who made the parts and built them. What a legacy they have left us and what an inspiration to do more with today’s technologies. The robots are far more productive than manned space flight and a whole lot cheaper and safer. They were launched two years after I graduated engineering school and I have seen the planets in a way only dreamed about for thousands of years. Truly a good time to be alive!
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Great presentation, Aaron! "Don't neglect your project after launch". Love it! Legacy application running on legacy hardware and still kicking it! =)
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Where has this presentation been for the past 20 years i've been interested in Voyager.
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That was exceptional, thank you :) I've always been fascinated by Voyager 1&2. I'm not above saying I will shed a tear when we finally lose contact, but who knows, maybe they will return with friends one day.
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RTGs are built SO strongly, that we've actually had ones crash back to Earth after rocket failures, recovered them, and then re-used them. This happened with Nimbus B-1 failure.
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As a sys admin seeing that uptime fills me with rage!!!! Also as a sys admin seeing that uptime makes me say "Don't ever reboot it!" 😉
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Fantastic talk - I find the engineering, the workarounds, the solution finding for the Voyager probes incredibly inspiring.
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I've worked on the Voyager project since 1979 and still gather data from the Voyagers on almost a daily basis. BTW, we do receive "high speed" data from Voyager 1 recorded on the tape and played back at a reduced rate. Here's a sample of these data which confirmed the transition into interstellar space: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFklHHWbYrk
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Thank you Mr. Cummings for a great, educational, and informative presentation. I’m still amazed, after all my years on our planet, of the accomplishments made in the space programs. ☺️
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All possible thanks to Plutonium-238 , Smokin HOT!
