Space buffs use crowdfunding to "wake up" abandoned NASA satellite

The International Sun-Earth Explorer was launched in 1978 but has been out of service since 1997.

A group of space buffs used crowdfunding to contact the satellite from a radio-telescope in Puerto Rico. On Thursday, ISEE-3 woke up and is now sending telemetry back to earth.

"We knew we could do this. It's a vindication," group co-director Keith Cowing told Science.

"It's sort of like reaching back in time to grab something that otherwise would have been lost," he continued.

Members of the Reboot Project confirm they will check out the crafts scientific equipment and then initiate a burn with its fuel left on board.

The goal is to move the satellite into an orbit that will allow the group to conduct further research.

More here.