Jim Bell (1) (1965–)

In The Interstellar Age: Inside the Forty-Year Voyager Mission, Jim Bell tells the story of NASA’s Voyagers 1 and 2, from the original realization that a rare planetary alignment would allow a Grand Tour of the outer solar system through their current work mapping the boundary between the sun’s influence and interstellar space. As awe-inspiring as the information Voyager is, Bell humanizes his narrative by focusing on the lives and work of those involved in the project in one form or show more another over its 40-year history. He focuses on how they organized their lives around the planetary fly-bys and how they inscribed their hopes and dreams onto Voyager 1 and 2, literally in the case of the Golden Record. Discussing the differences between the period in which Voyager launched and now, Bell writes of New Horizons (which flew-by Pluto in 2015), “It was launched without an interstellar message like Voyager’s on board. Perhaps this is a sign of a more anxious age” (pg. 97). In this, Bell examines the shifting national mood since the 1970s and new concerns about possible contact with extraterrestrial life based on our own history, such as the encounters between the Old World and the New. In turning to follow-up missions like Galileo and Cassini, which expanded upon the Voyager mission’s data from Jupiter and Saturn, respectively, Bell argues that both Uranus and Neptune deserve follow-up as they each only received a single fly-by and the most recent information comes at a distance from Earth-based observatories. He writes, “In the Interstellar Age, we know that to truly get to know a place, you’ve got to spend real time there, among the locals, learning their strange, alien ways” (pg. 189). Both NASA aficionados and those studying the history of space flight will find Bell’s work a valuable addition to their bookshelves. show less

I was in elementary school and middle school in the late 90s/early 2000s, and until I read this book, I had no idea that the pictures of the planets in my textbooks, specifically Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune, and Uranus, were taken by the Voyager satellites only years before. I took it for granted that scientists somehow had pictures (or at least a general idea of what those planets looked like), and that was how we knew, too. It was really exciting and interesting to read about how the Voyager show more scientists planned and implemented the mission (two Voyager satellites were sent out into space to photograph and study the 4 planets and their moons, using gravity from each as a slingshot to get to the next planet; the first was sent off into space after Jupiter, and the second continued on to the last two planets before it, too, continued its interstellar journey). It's amazing that some of the scientists working on this mission have been doing so for 40 years! Talk about your life's work...

Bell writes about the science involved with the Voyagers in a mostly understandable way. There were only a few points where I had to re-read or just skim altogether because I had no idea what was going on. I also enjoyed how he framed his Voyager history by going into his own personal history with science and space (although this may annoy some readers, I found his humor and absolute awe with JPL, NASA, and space exploration a delight). Bell conducted interviews with scientists who were/are involved with the mission, so it was neat to get first person insight into the successes and troubles of the mission.

Since the satellites completed their "prime directive" of studying the planets some years ago, they have spent the time since travelling ever onward into interstellar space, with the goal of one day passing the heliopause (the boundary between the solar and interstellar winds, aka, Way Way Far Out). What’s amazing is that the satellites have the capacity to last for decades more out in space, which means we can still get readings on the space that they are travelling through (and I mean travel: the satellites are going about 1o miles per second!). Now this is what really blows my mind: even travelling at that speed, the Voyagers will still take about 30,000 years to reach the edge of the Oort Cloud (the huge shell of asteroids and comets that extends to the edge of the sun’s gravitational influence). Space! It’s HUGE! Clearly, I geeked out hardcore over this book. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the Voyagers, and I especially enjoyed Bell's ruminations on extraterrestrial beings (or future Earth space travelers in the distant future who will be able to catch up to them) finding the satellites and the Golden Record on which we recorded what we and our planet are like. show less

While the writing won't win any awards, I have to say I really, really loved this frankly adoring account of the Voyager mission, complete with profiles of the people involved that fall well over the line into hero-worship. Bell's enthusiasm is irresistible, and his descriptions of the many technical issues the teams of scientists and engineers had to solve are just fascinating. In the end the reader feels that Bell's sometimes gushing praise of the project and the people involved in it is show more entirely deserved -- the fact that the mission performed so well, for so long, as teams cycled in and out of the Voyager project, budgets were allocated and then cut, equipment updated, failed, upgraded, and all the while this bundle of parts armed with technology analogous to 8 track tape players hurtled farther and farther away....it really is a testament to what we can achieve when we want to. It would be dismissing the hard work of the people involved to call the Voyager mission "miraculous," but by the end of the book it sure feels that way. Especially now, against the backdrop of a polarized, petty American political climate.

But the real attraction of the book was the enthusiastic guided tour it offers of the solar system. Each time Voyager passes a planet, or a moon, Bell can barely contain himself while describing how amazing the discoveries were -- how unexpected so many things turned out to be -- rings around Uranus! Volcanoes on Io! Windy weather on Neptune! It really made me realize how much I take for granted, living in an era where space exploration is a reality, where periodic pictures of other planets, from space probes launched decades ago, showing up in my facebook news feed are wonderful, but not so surprising.

I kind of want to send the book to any member of congress who questions why we should spend money on the space program. But even more than that, I'm reminded of why I am very lucky to be of the generation who understands what it means to be able to see the Earth, and so much more, from space. show less

One of the greatest voyages of discovery humanity has ever embarked upon began with the launch of the Voyager spacecraft in 1977. In this book, Bell provides a historical narrative that almost reads like an adventure novel. It's engaging, informative, and inspiring.