What is the current status of Voyager 1's attitude and control system?

[Jenab2]

Big difference there.
By measuring the parameters of the orbit, it is possible to calculate the parameters of the future and launch a probe for a meeting.
Repeating these calculations we will obtain more accurate calculations and more accurately guide the probe.
It is quite obvious algorithm.

Calculating an interception orbit isn't simple. Try it sometime.

The reason it isn't simple is that the solution does not occur in closed form. The solution requires a match in the transit times of two different objects, in two different orbits, with both objects reaching the same position in space at the same time. One of the objects is the thing you're trying to intercept. The other object is the spaceship you are using to intercept that thing with.

In general, the spaceship and the object to be intercepted will require different amounts of time to reach any given point on the path of the object to be intercepted. The job of the celestial mechanic is to find one of those exceptional combinations of departure instant and arrival position for which the two objects' transit times are equal.

Furthermore, when the object to be intercepted is an alien space probe, inbound on one leg of a hyperbolic trajectory and then outbound on the other, undertaking to intercept it is going to require a lot of change-of-velocity by our spaceship. If it can be done at all, it won't be cheap. Or quick, either, since the spaceship's speed along its own outbound hyperbolic path will close on the alien space probe by only the difference in their hyperbolic excess speeds.

It might be more productive to try to find out where the alien space probe came from, by back-tracking its inbound trajectory and by reversing (in simulation) the motions of all nearby stars. If we were lucky enough to identify the likely origin star system, we could point a high-gain radio at it and beam some nifty Star Trek theme music at the aliens.

 

[secur]

It is not heading towards the center of the galaxy. It is only heading in a direction where we also see the center of the galaxy. Both the sun and Voyager (and everything else in the solar system) orbits the central part of the galaxy with roughly 200 km/s. The speed of voyager is tiny compared to that, so it is still in a wide orbit around the central part.

mfb, actually Sol's speed is 253 km/sec according to latest data, but of course you're right: Voyager 1 is much less at 17 and on the galactic scale it's almost meaningless - except, indeed, on a galactic scale of years! Its velocity vector is down towards the galactic plane at an angle of 41 degrees or so, relative to us, so it should cross before us. Since it takes roughly 20,000 years to get a LY away, at that time (galactic plane crossing) it will no longer be in our neighborhood; but it's impossible to know really, since it will experience random alterations in course from stars (even passing within a LY affects it a little), dust collisions, EM radiation pressure, and/or capture by aliens, as the millenia go by. Of course I could be wrong about any of this ...

Bottom line, Sagittarius A doesn't have to worry about being attacked by Earthlings any time soon.

 

[rootone]

Maybe it will accidentally encounter an alien civilization whose preferred choice of clothing is silver miniskirts, and it will become worshipped as a deity.
(jk: star trek movie 1)

 

[Partick]

Ohhh and I forgot to comment ...

that statement is basically incorrect
Like the majority, the galaxy, is not a constant thickness throughout
most spiral galaxies have a central bulge and are more or less similar to this pic, ...

View attachment 97407Dave

Sort of looks like flying saucer!

 

[Oldman too]

Like all high mileage vehicles (approximately 12.1 billion miles) Voyager is needing some attention. https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/engineers-investigating-nasas-voyager-1-telemetry-data
"The engineering team with NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft is trying to solve a mystery: The interstellar explorer is operating normally, receiving and executing commands from Earth, along with gathering and returning science data. But readouts from the probe’s attitude articulation and control system (AACS) don’t reflect what’s actually happening onboard."