Follow Voyager flight paths past gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune and beyond Pluto

This animation shows the paths of the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft, which were designed to explore the outer planets of the solar system. The twin probes, each carrying 10 instruments, provided a wealth of new information about interplanetary space and the four giant gas planets and their moons. The Voyagers were launched in late 1977. In 1979 they reached Jupiter. Passing through the planet's gravitational field, they gathered enough energy to “slingshot” around the planet and head for Saturn. Voyager 1 reached Saturn in November 1980 and then headed out of the solar system. Voyager 2 continued on to Uranus, reaching the planet in January 1986. Changing course again and heading for Neptune, the spacecraft arrived at the outermost gas giant in August 1989. It then continued out of the solar system. In the first years of the 21st century, each craft was still sending back information about the outer reaches of the solar system and had traveled well beyond the orbit of Pluto.