Favorite Satellite in the Solar System

[NightBazaar]

Originally Posted by asubram3

Hmm.... I don't know if the Sun, Earth, or Jupiter could be considered satellites (Earth and Jupiter are planets). I meant satellites like the Moon, Phobos, Titan, Ganymede, Ariel, etc...

My favorites would include:

Io


Callisto:


Miranda:

Seeing how you're talking about moons around planets, my favorite is the Moon. All the moons around other planets are unique and amazing, all worth greater study. The Moon holds a special interest though.

[GregW]

I have a special fondness for the solar satillite I an sitting on.

[Vansdad]

Europa is a favorite of mine

[Magnum Mike]

As far as cellestial satelites in our own solar system, that's tough to answer.

With man-made satelites, besides the ones that are in earth's orbit, I'd say Voyager 1, which was launched in 1977 and is about to go beyond the bounderies of our solar system, and it'll take about 130,000 years to reach the next star and its neighboring planets, and God only knows what it'll find out there, or if it gets found by another intelligent life. If that were to happen, whoever finds it, they'll also find several items that were placed on it prior to the launch, one of which was a gold-plated record that has sounds of the earth. Hopefully that intelligent life will have a turntable to play it on...

[NightBazaar]

Originally Posted by Magnum Mike

As far as cellestial satelites in our own solar system, that's tough to answer.

With man-made satelites, besides the ones that are in earth's orbit, I'd say Voyager 1, which was launched in 1977 and is about to go beyond the bounderies of our solar system, and it'll take about 130,000 years to reach the next star and its neighboring planets, and God only knows what it'll find out there, or if it gets found by another intelligent life. If that were to happen, whoever finds it, they'll also find several items that were placed on it prior to the launch, one of which was a gold-plated record that has sounds of the earth. Hopefully that intelligent life will have a turntable to play it on...

The thing is that since both Voyager 1 and 2 are expected to leave the gravitationaal influence of the solar system, they aren't exactly satellites. They'll be interstellar spacecraft. If there is any intelligent life out there, I doubt it's likely the Voyagers will be found. They're pretty small, about the size of a subcompact car, and the space between stars is unimaginably vast. It's pretty unlikely they'll drift into any stars. While it's commonly said, they'll drift forever, that's unlikely as well. They'll eventually be completely worn down from collisions with interstellar dust, not to mention subatomic particles constantly blasting away at it. Cosmic radiation in interstellar space is pretty intense. Wear and tear in space is known in the solar system alone from pitting to the space shuttle caused by micrometeorites as fine as dust.
STS-118: Micrometeorite Dings Shuttle Windshield

[Glitch]

Originally Posted by NightBazaar

The thing is that since both Voyager 1 and 2 are expected to leave the gravitationaal influence of the solar system, they aren't exactly satellites. They'll be interstellar spacecraft. If there is any intelligent life out there, I doubt it's likely the Voyagers will be found. They're pretty small, about the size of a subcompact car, and the space between stars is unimaginably vast. It's pretty unlikely they'll drift into any stars. While it's commonly said, they'll drift forever, that's unlikely as well. They'll eventually be completely worn down from collisions with interstellar dust, not to mention subatomic particles constantly blasting away at it. Cosmic radiation in interstellar space is pretty intense. Wear and tear in space is known in the solar system alone from pitting to the space shuttle caused by micrometeorites as fine as dust.
STS-118: Micrometeorite Dings Shuttle Windshield

At Voyager I's current rate of speed (13 km / second) were talking 23,077 years to travel one light year, or 96,923 years to reach Proxima Centauri.