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This week’s new questions

If they continue on their current trajectories, what is the probability Voyager 1 or 2 will crash into a planet or star in the (distant) future? And do people who live in hilly towns have better health than those who live in flat towns?

6 December 2023

In this Voyager 2 image of Saturn, obtained Aug. 11, 1981, from a range of 14.7 million kilometers (9.1 million miles), north is at the upper right edge of the disc. Seen above the planet are the satellites Dione (right) and Enceladus. This false-color print shows a green spot at the south edge of a yellow band; in true color, the spot would appear brown and the band white. A bright yellow spot slightly above and to the left in this image moves eastward relative to the green spot at a rate that allows it to pass the green feature in about 50 days. The convective clouds that appear between the two spots are typical of the region. Here, the smallest visible structures measure about 270 kilometers (170 miles). The Voyager project is managed for NASA by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/images/pia01959-voyager-2-image-of-saturn

NASA/JPL

If they continue on their current trajectories, what is the probability Voyager 1 or 2 will crash into a planet or star in the (distant) future?

Paul Mitchell,

Tregony, Cornwall, UK

2JAN5P2 Holland Street meets the steep Albion Hill in the Hanover neighbourhood of Brighton

Scott Hortop Travel/Alamy

Do people who live in hilly towns have better health than those who live in flat towns?

Derek Johnson,

Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, UK

To answer this question – or ask a new one – email lastword@newscientist.com.

Questions should be scientific enquiries about everyday phenomena, and both questions and answers should be concise. We reserve the right to edit items for clarity and style. Please include a postal address, daytime telephone…

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