Lawrence Krauss talks the end-life of Cassini and the infinite abyss

More from this show

Intergalactic travel celebrated two major milestones this month: Voyager 1’s 40th year in space, and the end-life of the Cassini spacecraft.

Lawrence Krauss, a theoretical physicist at Arizona State University, spoke with Arizona Horizon about the similarities between the two missions. Cassini was launched into Saturn’s orbit in 1997 by NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. It was discovered through Cassini that Saturn has 62 moons   half of which were unknown to the science community.

Voyager 1, also launched by NASA, celebrated its 40th anniversary in space on Sept. 5, where it is currently  20.8 billion kilometers from the earth. Voyager 1 passed Saturn in 1980 and is the most distant human-made object in space.

The main difference between the two crafts, according to Krauss, are their lifespans. Voyager 1 will continue its journey indefinitely, whereas Cassini will self-destruct on Sept. 15.

Lawrence Krauss: Physicist, ASU

A photo journalist walking a destroyed city
airs April 2

Frontline: 20 Days in Mariupol

A woman working on a project in an art studio
airs March 29

Violet Protest

The
aired March 25

Pulitzer on the Road: Small Town Shakedown

A salad that has corn, avocado, and other delicious toppings
airs March 28

Tune in for an all new episode of ‘Check, Please! Arizona’

Subscribe to Arizona PBS Newsletters

STAY in touch
with azpbs.org!

Subscribe to Arizona PBS Newsletters: