
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA has lost contact with a spacecraft that has orbited Mars for more than a decade.
Maven abruptly stopped communicating to ground stations over the weekend. NASA said this week that it was working fine before it went behind the red planet. When it reappeared, there was only silence.
Launched in 2013, Maven began studying the upper Martian atmosphere and its interaction with the solar wind once reaching the red planet the following year. Scientists ended up blaming the sun for Mars losing most of its atmosphere to space over the eons, turning it from wet and warm to the dry and cold world it is today.
Maven also has served as a communication relay for NASA’s two Mars rovers, Curiosity and Perseverance.
Engineering investigations are underway, according to NASA.
NASA has two other spacecraft around Mars that are still active: Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, launched in 2005, and Mars Odyssey, launched in 2001.
___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
latest_posts
- 1
The Response to Fake General Knowledge: Investigating the Eventual fate of artificial intelligence - 2
Turkiye’s Erdogan calls Israel’s Somaliland recognition ‘unacceptable’ - 3
Amazon sued over 'punitive' handling of employee absences - 4
What is the Insurrection Act? Can Trump really use the military to 'put an end' to Minneapolis ICE protests? - 5
Flu activity in US could continue to rise for weeks, top CDC epidemiologist says
The Most Compelling Books of the 10 years
Why Tourists May Want To Reconsider Traveling To This Popular Spot In Italy In 2026
The cave was pitch black – so to create this magical underwater shot, the photographer had to use all his camera expertise...
Finding the Universe of Workmanship: Individual Encounters in Imagination
NASA's Artemis 2 astronauts are cruising to the moon. So why are they doing CPR tests today?
Which Startup's Innovation Could Reform Medical care?
Elanco's drug gets emergency nod to treat deadly flesh-eating parasite in cats
Spanish police and soldiers track boars, reinforce farm security amid swine fever outbreak
Alleged maple syrup scam in Quebec uncovered by Canadian broadcaster













