NASA still maintains some of the Voyager spacecraft code in a 1970s-era programming language that almost nobody on Earth fully understands anymore, and the handful of engineers who do are now in their 80s. (opens in new tab)

The popular version of the story sounds almost too perfect: NASA is still flying the Voyager spacecraft with code written in a 1970s-era programming language that barely anyone understands anymore, kept alive by a few elderly engineers who remember how it all works. Like many great space stories, the truth is a little messier — […]