【“The Poetics of Eroticism: Shakespeare's ‘Master Mistress'.”】

The “The Poetics of Eroticism: Shakespeare's ‘Master Mistress'.”Voyager 1 spacecraft is sending back some funky data from interstellar space that's leaving NASA engineers scratching their heads.

Readouts on the orientation of the 1970s-era space probe now appear to be randomly generated or don't reflect any possible scenario the spacecraft could be in, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory officials said this week.

The problematic data are coming from the so-called "attitude articulation and control system," or AACS, the onboard equipment that measures, reports, and changes the position of the vehicle in space. The system keeps an antenna pointed at Earth, which allows it to send data home.

---

You May Also Like

---

---

SEE ALSO: Far-flung Voyager 1 thrusters come to life after almost 40 years of disuse

• It took a lot of work to launch humanity’s greatest message into space

• The interstellar dream is dying

• NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft is now flying through the stars

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

The new bizarre situation calls into question the future for the long-duration mission. Given that Voyager 1 continues to return data from its science instruments, all signs suggest the controls are still working, though the data doesn't make sense, the U.S. space agency said. It otherwise seems to be functioning normally.

"A mystery like this is sort of par for the course at this stage of the Voyager mission," said Suzanne Dodd, project manager for Voyager 1 and 2 in a NASA statement released Wednesday.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

"A mystery like this is sort of par for the course at this stage of the Voyager mission."

Both Voyager 1 and 2 are almost 45 years old, which is far beyond their original life expectancy. Interstellar space is a high-radiation environment that no spacecraft has ever flown in before, she said, so surprises are almost expected to arise.

Voyager 1 is 14.5 billion miles from Earth. That means light takes 20 hours and 33 minutes to travel that distance. In other words, the lag between getting a message to Voyager and receiving a response is about two days.

"There are some big challenges for the engineering team," Dodd said. "But I think if there's a way to solve this issue with the [telemetry], our team will find it."

Voyager 1 has been exploring the solar system since 1977, along with its counterpart, Voyager 2. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Voyager 1 has been exploring the solar system since 1977, along with its counterpart, Voyager 2. They were originally intended to study Jupiter and Saturn, their moons, and Saturn's rings. For the two-planet mission, they were built to last just five years.

With their initial success, engineers doubled the missions' objectives to include two more giant planets, Uranus and Neptune. Between the two, the spacecraft have explored four planets, 48 moons, and a host of planetary magnetic fields and rings.

The spacecraft generate about 4 fewer watts of power annually, limiting the number of systems they can operate. The mission team has turned off equipment to reserve power. No science instruments have been powered down yet. The goal is to keep the Voyagers running beyond 2025, according to NASA.

• Shopping
• Deals
• Digital Culture
• Games
• Life
• Science
• Social Good
• Entertainment

• EV sales up 30 percent this year despite Tesla woes
• AT&T will add fake 5G labels to some Android phones
• Drone sightings are causing total chaos at one of the UK's busiest airports
• Watch an astronaut try to walk after returning to Earth from space
• Best smartwatch deal: Save $40 on the Fitbit Versa 4
• Disney removes healthy gumbo recipe after Louisiana revolts
• Group of hungry grizzly bears terrorize Canadian family
• The 'bun drop' is the latest confusing Instagram hair trend
• Things AMD Needs to Fix
• The best comfort entertainment of 2018

• Why is gender
• Even Fox News admits Kavanaugh hearing is a disaster for Republicans
• PS5 restock at Walmart and Amazon: How to buy the console on June 2
• Instagram adds Amber Alert notifications directly to the app
• Depp v. Heard: What the trial and verdict say about our culture
• Instagram has some sort of bug
• 5 kids movies on Amazon Prime Video that are actually worth watching
• Brett Kavanaugh once got into a fight about UB40 and it's spawned some very solid memes
• Bo Burnham has released one hour of 'Inside' outtakes
• The best video games of 2022 that we've played so far

• Today's Hurdle hints and answers for May 5, 2025
• Google Chrome may soon keep your back button from being hijacked
• Donald Trump's visit to a church in Flint was super awkward
• Remember that data
• Outdoor speaker deal: Save $20 on the Soundcore Boom 2
• 14 innovations that helped make the world a better place in 2018
• Kim Kardashian imagines a world where Donald Trump and Hilllary Clinton ugly cry together
• DayOne is the last diary you'll ever need
• Today's Hurdle hints and answers for March 18, 2025
• 13 activists who gave us hope in 2018

• NYT Strands hints, answers for May 2
• Aussie athlete wins gold in Paralympic tennis and basketball
• The best new podcasts of 2018
• Uber fired Anthony Levandowski. Now he's back with a self
• Fyre Festival and Trump’s Language
• Melania Trump shares legal letter on immigration status on Twitter
• Google Chrome may soon keep your back button from being hijacked
• 'Aquaman' mid
• Wombat butt biting sex habits could be helpful for its survival
• Tor should be your internet best friend