Voyager 1 - Why did it disappear ? Conclusions. or A Study of the Water Take-up Rates with Different Foam Types.

Voyager 1 - Why did it disappear ? Conclusions.

A Study of the Water Take-up Rates with Different Foam Types.

I suspect Voyager 1 sank off Lord Howe Island due to the take-up of water into the spray foam, which was used as primary buoyancy.

The test this hypothesis, I set up a test using samples of foam with a standardised size of 10cm x 10 cm x 10cm (1litre). These were held in water for several weeks. The foam samples were weighed daily and the results were plotted.

Two Foam Samples created from Spray Foam (Open Cell). 

Sample of Construction Foam (Closed Cell).

Test Rig - Two Buckets of Water and Bricks.

Weight Gain of the Foam while held in water over 42 days.

The Construction Foam (closed cell) gained a couple of grams of water in the first day or two, and then its weight did not noticeably change for the next 40 days.

The Spray Foam (open cell) gained weight through out the 40 day test.  The samples of Spray Foam gained between 150g and 190g of water during the test. This represents 15% to 19% by volume of the foam.

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I suspect that this take-up of water into the spray foam buoyancy caused the vessel to sink; and this was the most likely reason for the loss of signal.