<p><font color="#800080">What I was wondering about, but didn’t get into the posting, is; if the Voyagers were not meant for interstellar voyage, what is the point in the ‘golden record’? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_Golden_Record</font></p><p>The Pioneers and Voyagers themselves were not designed for interstellar travel in the sense they could be functional upon arrival at some star system. The plaque was put there because the designers or whoever knew thw Voyagers trajectories would carry it into interstellar space. The plaque designers simply wanted something there just in case that in some 1 in 1oo quadrillion zillion chance that the probe would be intercepted by ETs. </p><p><font color="#800080">Do astronomers still consider Extra Terrestrial life in our own solar system as possible?</font></p><p>If by extraterrestrial life, you mean any form. Astronomers do consider that microbial life is possible on mars and maybe subsurface oceans of europa. Intelligent life, I doubt any astronomers believe our own solar system harbors any. </p><p><font color="#800080">I don’t really know the 3D direction from Sol to Alpha Centauri. Is it through the Kuiper Belt’s plane, or is the direct path another angle, free from plutoids' hazard? Posted by vidargander</font></p><p><br /> <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/4/9/24f30fac-13d1-4a9d-a9d4-24fc0d79f60e.Medium.jpg" alt="" /><br />Note the earths and Alpha Centauris position, the sun would be out of view just below the bottom portion of the image.</p><p><br /> <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/3/6/13e7789e-e1d7-4ca7-b6ea-49b6bf7a2f43.Medium.jpg" alt="" /><br />Viewed from the side, earth ahead of the sun tho the arrow points to its position relative to the sun, in reality...the earth is much closer to the sun but due to the enormous scale and distance. I used the arrow to show what side of the sun earth is on so you can ref it to the top graphic.</p><p>Im not sure if the Kuiper Belt extends below the ecliptic, that is...5 plus billion miles below. The name implies that it does not but since they have only observed a tiny portion of the belt...dont know if its a belt or full blown sphere of objects. However, the distance between individual objects at the KB distance, is so enormous...there is probably very little chance of collision with larger objects. </p><p> </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>