Pioneer 10 - what's next?

I know Pioneer 10 has stopped responding. It's on course for
Aldebaran - is it actually expected to get there? I know it's a
looooong trip Anyone know when it's expected to arrive?

I was wondering if we'll ever know. Let's assume some day we can go
to Aldebaran (through some Star Trek Warp Drive technology or
whatever). I wonder if we'll develop such technology before P-10 hits
Aldebaran? Then we could watch its journey.

If not, I wonder what P-10's ultimate fate will be. Burn up in
Aldebaran? Burn up in one of the system's planet's atmoshere? Crash
into some asteroid there? Assume some kind of orbit? Or will we
discover it in some alien race's Smithsonian?

Just musing about the little spacecraft that could.

"Andrew Fabbro" wrote in message
om...
I know Pioneer 10 has stopped responding. It's on course for
Aldebaran - is it actually expected to get there? I know it's a
looooong trip Anyone know when it's expected to arrive?

The home page is at

http://spaceprojects.arc.nasa.gov/Sp...er/PNStat.html

"Pioneer 10 will continue into interstellar space, heading
generally for the red star Aldebaran, which forms the eye
of Taurus (The Bull). Aldebaran is about 68 light years
away and it will take Pioneer over 2 million years to reach
it."

It doesn't say what the distance would be at closest
approach but I would expect this is just the nearest
well-known star to the trajectory and it will probably
miss by some light years.

I was wondering if we'll ever know. Let's assume some day we can go
to Aldebaran (through some Star Trek Warp Drive technology or
whatever). I wonder if we'll develop such technology before P-10 hits
Aldebaran? Then we could watch its journey.

Using a bit of speculative engineering, I estimate a
diamondoid solar sail could get to Aldebaran in a
little over 40,000 years. The voyager craft were
launched later but have already passed Pioneer so
given solutions to a few other details, we could be
there long before the craft.

If not, I wonder what P-10's ultimate fate will be. Burn up in
Aldebaran? Burn up in one of the system's planet's atmoshere? Crash
into some asteroid there? Assume some kind of orbit? Or will we
discover it in some alien race's Smithsonian?

Just musing about the little spacecraft that could.

It will wander the galaxy forever like the ball in a
pinball machine being slightly influenced by every
star it passes. The chances of colliding with anything
are small but given enough time all things come to pass.

George