When spacecraft fail, they often fail dramatically. But “if the mission survives entry and landing or insertion into orbit, the spacecraft typically lasts two to three times longer than planned,” says Richard Zurek, chief scientist for NASA’s Mars Program Office. Here are some examples of craft that have lived to enjoy missions well beyond their original assignments.
Voyager 1 and 2
Launched in 1977, these spacecraft were originally tasked with flybys of Jupiter and Saturn to snap photos and gather data on temperature and atmosphere composition.
