# How far is Voyager 1 from Earth?

About 171.3 astronomical units, 25.6 billion km, or 23.7 light-hours. The figure changes daily, so this explains what moves it and where to see it live.

## The short answer

On 22 August 2026 Voyager 1 was about 171.3 astronomical units from Earth. That is 25.6 billion kilometres, or 23.7 light-hours: far enough that a message takes nearly a day to arrive and nearly two days to get an answer back.

## Why every answer you find is slightly different

Two reasons, and neither is anyone being careless. Voyager 1 is receding at about three and a half astronomical units a year, so a figure quoted last year is a few au short by now. On top of that, Earth is going round the Sun, so the distance between the two rises and falls by about 1.6 au over twelve months regardless of the spacecraft moving. Any single number is only true on the day it was worked out.

## Distance from Earth, or from the Sun?

Most sources quote the distance from the Sun, because it is the steadier number and the one that describes where the spacecraft has got to. The distance from Earth is the one that decides how long the signal takes. On 22 August 2026 they were 171.5 au and 171.3 au, close together at that moment because of where Earth happened to be in its orbit.

See it in the model: https://astro.observer/orrery/?body=voyager-1

Sources:
- NASA, Voyager 1 mission: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/voyager-1/
- JPL Horizons, the trajectory this model samples: https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/horizons/

Gallery: https://astro.observer/