NASA engineers have successfully extended the mission of Voyager 2, a spacecraft launched nearly 48 years ago. The effort, known as the Big Bang, has allowed the spacecraft to continue operating for at least another year. The spacecraft's power source, radioisotope thermoelectric generators, converts heat from decaying plutonium into electricity.

However, the plutonium fuel depletes over time, resulting in a loss of about 4 watts of power each year. To conserve energy, engineers have shut down some powered devices and replaced them with lower-power alternatives. Further details on the Voyager 2 mission and the Big Bang effort are available from NewsChannel 5 WTVF, a CBS affiliate in Nashville, TN.