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the Sun's orbit in the Galaxy... isn't Voyager going the same way?
I hope I can ask this right..... if the Sun is cooking along at 486,000 mph in its orbit of the center of the galaxy, how can little Voyager at 38,000 mph, get OUT of the heliopause, ever?... seems to me that Voyager's speed wouldn't be enough to let it get far enough ahead of the heliopause and that the Sun would keep moving in the same direction as Voyager, faster than the probe, and overtake it ....??..... or is Voyager travelling in a direction that would let the Sun slide by after all?.....what am I seeing in this diagram that would make me think they'll get out?....
so, when they took off, they already had the Sun's 486k going for them, PLUS their own speed?....and that's been good enuff for 35 years to keep them out in front.... thanks.... you realize I'm easily amazed...!!.... *smile*................
3 Answers
- MorningfoxLv 79 years ago
Yes, of course the Voyager's speed is enough to get out of the heliopause. The reported speed is relative to the sun. If you want the speed relative to the center of the galaxy, you would need to add in the speed of the sun around the center (vector math).
So if the sun is moving at 486,000 mph, then Voyager 1 is going at 486,000 + 38,000 mph. Detailed calculations would need to include the fact that the probe is moving at an angle of 48 degrees to the Sun's motion around the galaxy.
- John WLv 79 years ago
Voyager is moving at 38,000 mph relative to the Sun. The Sun's velocity relative to the Galaxy is part of Voyager's velocity relative to the Galaxy.
- 9 years ago
We measure the Voyagers' speed relative to the Sun, not the center of the Galaxy.
