Space Probes
What do you already know about Space probes?
Astronauts can’t explore the whole of space for us, it is just too big. The furthest any astronaut has travelled is the Moon. So humans have developed more and more advanced machines to do it for us. Many unmanned spacecraft called space probes have been launched up into space. They have explored all the planets in the Solar System, as well as many of the moons, asteroids and comets that make up the rest. Some have even made it out of the Solar System!
Space probes are sent to gather information and photographs about objects in the Solar System that otherwise we would know very little about.
There have been over 200 different space probes launched up into space. Some were launched to fly past planets and other objects in space gathering as much data as it can as it flew past its target. Other probes were created to orbit or even land on their target. Probes known as rovers have landed on Mars and have driven around to study the surface.
It often takes space probes a very long time to get to their destination which is why humans don’t visit these places in Space, it would just take them too long to get there and then get back! Space probes very rarely come back to Earth once they have completed their mission.
Below are just a few examples of space probes that have completed successful missions into space. There have been many more! Hover over the pictures to learn more about them…
Sputnik 1 was the first ever space probe to go into space and orbit Earth. It was launched in 1957. It was quickly followed by Sputnik 2. Both were launched by the Soviet Union (now Russia and other countries).
Explorer 1 was the first probe sent up to space by NASA in 1958. It orbited Earth for 12 years!
Mariner 2 was the first probe to travel away from the Earth and successfully go to see another planet. It was launched in 1962 by NASA and sent towards Venus to fly past it and gather information about its atmosphere and how hot the planet was.
Mariner 4 was the first space probe to take a photograph of another planet. It was launched in 1964 by NASA and flew past Mars in 1965 taking photos of its surface.
Mariner 9 was launched on the 30th May 1971 and was the first spacecraft to orbit another planet. It arrived at Mars on the 14th November 1971. It took photos of most of the surface and discovered volcanoes, including Olympus Mons, huge canyons and evidence of water previously being on the planet.
An illustration of Venera 7, a Soviet Union spacecraft that was the first space probe to land safely on another planet. Its lander landed on Venus and sent back photographs of the surface and data about the planet.
Viking 1 and 2 were both launched in 1975. They both successfully landed on Mars taking some amazing photos of the surface.
The Curiosity Rover landed on Mars in 2012 and is still there exploring the planet. It was expected to last 2 years but so far has been there over 13 years!
Galileo was launched in 1989 and travelled to Jupiter. It then orbited the planet, learning more about the planet itself and its many moons. It was crashed into Jupiter on purpose in 2003.
The Solar Parker Probe was launched on the 12th August 2018. It flew closer to the Sun than any other spacecraft ever on the 24th December 2024.
Some probes are described as interstellar probes. Interstellar probes are space probes that have left the Solar System, or are expected to make it beyond the Solar System.
There are five interstellar probes currently in space. Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 have already made it out of the Solar System and New Horizons is on its way. Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11 are believed to still be going but lost contact with Earth long before they reached interstellar space.
Voyager 1 and 2 were launched in 1977 and flew past Jupiter and Saturn and then kept on going heading towards the edge of our Solar System. Voyager 2 gained lots of information about Uranus and Neptune as well. They are still out in space and can be communicated with and are still sending data back about what they find.Â
New Horizons was launched in 2006 and flew all the way through the Solar System to the dwarf planet Pluto. In 2015 it reached its destination! After studying Pluto the probe carried on its journey outwards to explore what lies beyond Pluto, such as other dwarf planets.
Voyager 1 is the farthest human made object from Earth. It is 1 light day away, which is about 15.8 billion miles from us!
New Horizons is currently exploring the Kuiper Belt beyond Pluto.
What we've learnt...
Space probes are unmanned spacecraft that can explore the Solar System and beyond.
All the planets in the Solar System have been explored by space probes.
Some probes have landed on planets and moons in the Solar System. Some of these probes are rovers and can move around to explore even more.
Interstellar Probes are probes that have gone much further and left the Solar System.
Voyager 1 is the farthest human made object from Earth. It is 1 light day away, which is about 15.8 billion miles from us!
Test your knowledge...
Space Probes Quiz
If you click the correct answer the box will turn green. If it’s the wrong answer it will turn red and then show you what the correct answer was. Remember to read or listen to the questions carefully! If you are listening to the questions using Text To Speech make sure you pause it after it has read the questions and answers so you have a chance to think!
#1. Has every planet in the Solar System been explored by a space probe?
#2. What was the first ever space probe in space called?
#3. Is a space probe…
#4. Is Voyager 1…
#5. What is a space probe called that can move about on the surface of a planet or moon?
Results
I really hope you have enjoyed learning all about the space probes, with me Zoom!
Question Time...
Any questions?
Is there anything else you’d like to know? Ask your grown up or teacher to ask me! Your question and my answer could then appear here.
All images on this page are Whizzbots and Public Domain images.