Voyager 1 and 2

Images Voyager Took

The Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft explored Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune before starting their journey toward interstellar space. Here you'll find some of those iconic images, including "The Pale Blue Dot" - famously described by Carl Sagan - and what are still the only up-close images of Uranus and Neptune.

Solar System Family Portrait

Featured Image

Pale Blue Dot

The Pale Blue Dot is an iconic photograph of Earth taken on Feb. 14, 1990, by NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft.

Earth appears as a tiny speck of light suspended in a sunbeam against the vastness of space.

This narrow-angle color image of the Earth, dubbed 'Pale Blue Dot', is a part of the first ever 'portrait' of the solar system taken by Voyager 1.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

Jupiter

Photography of Jupiter began in January 1979, when images of the brightly banded planet already exceeded the best taken from Earth.

Voyager at Jupiter

12 Images

Criscrossing lines and squiggles mark the reddish surface of Europa.

A close-up of most of Callisto focused on a giant impact structure with concentric rings radiation for miles from the center.

Jupiter looks serene with only a thin crescent illuminated by the Sun.

Intricately swirling clouds surround the oval shape of the Earth-sized Great Red Spot.

A close up of swirling clouds and oval storms, including the giant Great Red Spot, on the face of Jupiter.

Several giant impact craters stand out in this partial view of the moon Ganymede.

This close-up of the limb of a moon is punctuated by a large impact structure with rings radiating out across the moon.

Io is mottled by eruptions from hundreds of volcanoes.

Jupiter's cloud bands swirl as the planet gets closer and closer in this timelapse movie.

A small circular band extends from the planet, which is barely illuminated in shadow.

Saturn

The Voyager 1 and 2 Saturn encounters occurred nine months apart, in November 1980 and August 1981.

Voyager at Saturn

13 Images

Enhanced color bring out the swirling bands of clouds on Saturn.

Hundreds of rings are packed together in a graceful circle around Saturn.

A closeup of the limb of Rhea reveals a surface covered with impact craters.

Cloaked in darkness, Saturn casts a shadow across its rings - a view that can only be seen from beyond Saturn.

Dozens of tight, concentric rings fill this close up of Saturn's rings.

A view of Saturn, tilted at an at an angle.

Three moons appear is small dots orbiting Saturn in this full view of the giant planet and its vast rings.

A squiggly band of clouds runs through more uniform bands of clouds.

Uranus

Voyager 2 spacecraft flew past distant Uranus, the seventh planet from the Sun, in January 1986.

Voyager at Uranus

9 Images

This is an image of the planet Uranus taken by the spacecraft Voyager 2 in 1986.

Two images of Uranus side-by-side. The left image shows Uranus in its true light blue color. The right images reveals the atmosphere in false color.

Tight concentric rings extending from the planet.

Ridges and valleys snake between the rugged, crater-filled surface of Ariel.

A thin blue crescent illuminated by the Sun is all that's visible of giant Uranus.

Ariels rugged, pock-marked terrain reveals its complexity in this close-up image.

A close-up of Miranda reveals tall mesas and deep, sinuous valleys.

Neptune

In the summer of 1989, NASA's Voyager 2 became the first spacecraft to observe the planet Neptune up close, its final planetary target.

Voyager at Neptune

11 Images

A deep blue planet with wispy white clouds moving across its face.

The bright cirrus-like clouds of Neptune change rapidly, often forming and dissipating over periods of several to tens of hours as seen in this sequence spanning two rotations of Neptune about 36 hours by NASA Voyager 2.

This image of Neptune was taken by NASA Voyager 2 wide-angle camera; small trails of similar clouds trending east to west and large scale structure east of the Great Dark Spot all suggest that waves are present in the atmosphere and play a large role

This bulls-eye view of Neptune small dark spot D2 was obtained by NASA Voyager 2 narrow-angle camera. Banding surrounding the feature indicates unseen strong winds.

This image, taken by NASA Voyager 2 early in the morning of Aug. 23, 1989, is a false color image of Triton, Neptune largest satellite; mottling in the bright southern hemisphere is present.

This dramatic view of the crescents of Neptune and Triton was acquired by Voyager 2 approximately 3 days, 6 and one-half hours after its closest approach to Neptune north is to the right.

This image of Neptune south polar region was obtained by NASA Voyager on Aug. 23, 1989. The image shows the discovery of shadows in Neptune atmosphere, shadows cast onto a deep cloud bank by small elevated clouds.

In Neptune outermost ring, 39,000 miles out, material mysteriously clumps into three arcs. Voyager 2 acquired this image as it encountered Neptune in August of 1989.

These three images of Neptune were acquired 90 minutes apart by NASA Voyager 2 spacecraft on April 3, 1989, from a range of 208 million kilometers 129 million miles. Several atmospheric features clouds are visible.

This false color photograph of Neptune was made from Voyager 2 images taken through three filters: blue, green, and a filter that passes light at a wavelength that is absorbed by methane gas.

Solar System Family Portrait

This narrow-angle color image of the Earth, dubbed 'Pale Blue Dot', is a part of the first ever 'portrait' of the solar system taken by Voyager 1.

Animated GIF showing the family portrait image from the perspective of Voyager 1 in 1990.

This data visualization uses actual spacecraft trajectory data to show the family portrait image from Voyager 1's perspective in February 1990.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

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Jupiter

Jupiter against black background of space

Saturn

A view of Saturn from the Cassini spacecraft shows the golden planet with its rings.

Uranus

This is an image of the planet Uranus taken by the spacecraft Voyager 2 in 1986.

Neptune

A deep blue planet with wispy white clouds moving across its face.