Nasa receives 'heartbeat' signal from Voyager 2 after losing contact in July

Nasa has picked up a "heartbeat" signal from Voyager 2 after it lost contact, the space agency said. 

The spacecraft, which has been exploring the universe since 1977, had its antenna point two degrees away from Earth after a wrong command was sent. 

Due to this, the probe stopped receiving commands or sending data. However, since Tuesday (2 August) Nasa said a signal from Voyager 2 was picked up during a regular scan of the sky.

Where is Voyager 2? 

Voyager 2 is over 12.3 billion miles (19.9 billion km) from Earth, hurtling at an estimated 34,390mph (55,346km/h) through interstellar space - the space between the stars.

Since 21 July, the Voyager 2 probe has been unable to receive commands or send back data to Nasa's Deep Space Network and the spacecraft is not receiving commands from ground controllers.

What did NASA hear?

The signal from the probe takes around 18 hours to reach Earth. However, Nasa has confirmed Voyager 2 is still broadcasting and is in "good health" after hearing a "heartbeat" signal as the Deep Space Network scanned the sky. The space agency compared the signal to a “heartbeat”, as it confirms the probe is still safe and sending messages back down to Earth.

The space agency said on Monday (31 July) its dish in Canberra, was trying to detect any stray signals from Voyager 2.

The antenna has also been bombarding Voyager 2's area with the correct command, in the hope of making contact with the probe, said Nasa Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the Voyager missions.

While fuller communication is not yet established, Voyager 2 is programmed to reset its orientation multiple times each year to keep its antenna pointing at Earth. The next reset is due on 15 October, which Nasa says "should enable communication to resume".

“We enlisted the help of the [Deep Space Network] and Radio Science groups to help to see if we could hear a signal from Voyager 2,” said Suzanne Dodd, Voyager’s project manager on Tuesday. “This was successful in that we see the ‘heartbeat’ signal from the spacecraft. So, we know the spacecraft is alive and operating. This buoyed our spirits.”

Voyager 2 hurtled into interstellar space in 2018 after discovering a new moon around Jupiter, 10 moons around Uranus and five around Neptune. It remains the only spacecraft to study all four of the solar system’s giant planets at close range.