Have aliens hijacked Voyager 2 spacecraft?

The Daily Telegraph (Australia) ^ | 5/12/10 | The Daily Telegraph

[Braak]

IT left Earth 33 years ago, now it's claimed the Voyager 2 spacecraft may have been hijacked by aliens after sending back data messages NASA scientists can't decode.

NASA installed a 12-inch disk containing music and greetings in 55 languages in case intelligent extraterrestrial life ever found it.

But now the spacecraft is sending back what sounds like an answer: Signals in an unknown data format!

The best scientific minds have so far not been able to decipher the strange information – is it a secret message?

Alien expert Hartwig Hausdorf said:"It seems almost as if someone had reprogrammed or hijacked the probe – thus perhaps we do not yet know the whole truth" Read more in Bild

Engineers are working to solve the data transmissions from the Voyager 2 spacecraft near the edge of the solar system, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory said today.

The spacecraft late last month began sending science data 8.6 billion miles to Earth in a changed format that mission managers could not decode.

Engineers have since instructed Voyager 2 to only transmit data on its own health and status while they work on the problem.

Launched in 1977, Voyager 2 and its twin, Voyager 1, explored the giant planets Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune and kept on going. Nearly 33 years later, they are the most distant human-made objects.

Voyager 1 is 10.5 billion miles from Earth and in about five years is expected to pass through the heliosphere, a bubble the sun creates around the solar system, and enter interstellar space.

Voyager 2 will follow after that.

[Braak]

Not sure this doesn't have a more mundane explanation? Data corruption due to the distance?

[knarf]

It’s called VeeJer now.

[RexBeach]

Maybe it was “Veegah”?

[Republic of Texas]

Data corruption? Don’t ruin the fun! It’s aliens dammit!

[numberonepal]

V   GER

[TexasCajun]

V’Ger ??

[knarf]

Beatcha’ by .07 of a sec !

[Bookwoman]

Interesting. I don’t buy data corruption. They know what data corruption looks like.

[a fool in paradise]

It’s as incompatible a format now as betamax, laserdisc, 8-track, and analog tv...

[Braak]

Well, if they show up looking for whales...we’ll be ok...mostly.

[ArrogantBustard]

Alien expert Hartwig Hausdorf

"Expert"????

[Jewbacca]

The Saturnaliens re-programed it.

Time moves slower for them due to their increased gravity.

The gravity also makes them unable to reach orbit with all but the smallest items.

[mnehring]

Bfltr

[Lazamataz]

Launched in 1977 and it's still not out of the solar system.

Space is big.

[a fool in paradise]

"Hi, I'm your VeeJer today!"

[TexasCajun]

I believe we have a consensus!! hehe

[Jewbacca]

He was an aide to Democrats in Congress. Inhuman.

[mad_as_he$$]

http://stargate.wikia.com/wiki/Replicator

[SparkyBass]

"D - R - I - N - K - Y - O - U - R - O - V - A - L - T - I - N - E......
Son of a ....."

:)

[knarf]

My brother still has an operational 8 track with a few Beach Boys tapes and a Simon and Garfunkle