Happy Retirement, Pioneer!

Stan Freberg here. NASA is calling home one of its' earliest spacecraft, Pioneer 10. It's been going and going for 25 years. But now, the little space explorer is being retired by NASA. Kinda sad. Be right back. [:60 SPOT BREAK] Freberg here. Launched back in 1972, the little spacecraft that could will soon make its' last orbit. Pioneer 10 sent back the first close-up views of Jupiter, and became the first object of human design to travel beyond the planets of the solar system. But now NASA says its' power is fading, its' radio signal growing feeble, and its' days are numbered. "It's done its' job very well, and deserves to retire," says B. J. O'Brian, who managed the Pioneer program. Say it isn't so, B. J.! First of all, how will it be retrieved? With a big butterfly net operated by astronauts? Then what? Back to the home office, given a gold antenna, and sent to "The Old Spacecraft Home" in a suburb of Houston, where it will sit and rock on the front porch with all the other retired satellites?: "...(ahem)...What'dya see, Pioneer?" "Ho-ho, well, I've seen some sights in my time, boy!...I've seen Jupiter! I've seen Saturn! I've seen Buzz Aldrin's GLOVE float by!" Hmm. Buzz was wondering what happened to that. Keep in touch, Pioneer, and Happy Orbiting, while it lasts. Stan Freberg here. Copyright (C)1997, Stan Freberg/Freberg, Ltd. (but not very) Distributed by Dick Brescia Associates and Radio Spirits, Inc.