17 years ago, NASA and ESA designed the Ulysses spacecraft. Their mission was to better explore the depths of the Sun and our Solar System. So far, Ulysses has outlived its expected lifetime by almost more than 4 times. It has brought back valuable, never before-seen images of the sun's poles. It's mission has been highly successful, but unforntunately, it's power is about shot. Ulysses is powered by the decay of a radioactive isotope. In January scientists decided to get what little information they could out of Ulysses, and this meant shutting the power off from the craft's heating system. As we speak, the craft is flying off past Jupiter. When the temperature reaches -2 degrees Celcius, the functions on the craft will begin to freeze up. Despite its death, the scientists are more than pleased with the craft's performance. So long, Ulysses!
http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=6660
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