According to BBC, Nasa's twin Voyager probes may have to close down in October to save money, the US space agency has said. Launched in 1977, Voyagers One and Two are now more than 14 billion and 11 billion km from Earth, respectively.

They are on their final mission to locate the boundary between the Sun's domain and interstellar space. But the agency's Earth-Sun System division has had to cut its budget for next year from $74m to $53m, meaning that some projects will be abandoned.

pfft! meaning some scientists would have to get a pay cut more like! and that cant possibly happen!

That's really stupid. To wait 28 years and then shut them down!

Explain to me how communicating with these devices once or twice a year can set you back any large part of $21 milj ? Or maybe I'm missing the picture here

As far as I know, everyone bids on how much time they are allowed to use the radio telescopes. It seems that they are at a very high cost. Competing with defence, other countries requests.......I guess its just not cost effective to lose money on "Time share" slots to an old program, when they can be making more on other ventures. If we all really cared, we would get the media involved, and then hopfully some deep pocket investor would fund it. But really, what direct benifit or profit would they gain.
Sad, very sad this is. I guess thats free enterprise for ya. Kind of like how a city bugets money for new sidewalks, but no money for maintenance. Then when the sidewalks need to be fixed, they tax the people more money for their bad planning.
This is why most scientists, are not businessmen..........