In early December, NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft, which had been studying the upper layers of Mars’ atmosphere for more than a decade, suddenly stopped responding to calls from Earth. The telemetry signals that were supposed to come through the powerful Deep Space Network antennas were never received. Thus began a lengthy operation to search for communication with the orbital station that had been lost in the silence of space.
Over the next few weeks, NASA engineers tried to figure out what had happened. Analysis of the latest data pointed to a possible unexpected change in the spacecraft’s orientation, causing it to “hide” behind the planet. Even the Curiosity rover’s camera tried to find MAVEN in Martian orbit, but without success. In mid-December, the agency made a grim prediction: the chances of restoring communication were estimated to be very low.
It's "very unlikely" NASA will be able to recover the MAVEN Mars orbiter, NASA planetary science division director Louise Prockter says at the Small Bodies Assessment Group meeting this morning. Efforts to restore contact will resume Friday, after solar conjunction ends.
— Jeff Foust (@jeff_foust) January 13, 2026
Last ray of hope
However, the mission team remains optimistic. The real test will be the solar conjunction — a period when Mars and Earth are on opposite sides of the Sun, which interferes with communication. Its completion on January 16 will open a new window of opportunity to try to “call” the spacecraft. Experts hope that after this natural phenomenon, MAVEN will be able to re-establish contact.
MAVEN has been a key player in studying the evolution of the Martian climate. Despite the potential loss, the Martian science program will not stop. Other spacecraft are operating in orbit and capable of relaying data from the surface. But every loss of a unique mission is a significant blow to the scientific community, which has spent years building a research program around this space explorer.
Now everything depends on whether MAVEN will respond to calls after the solar conjunction or remain a silent witness to the secrets of the Red Planet forever.
The spacecraft has encountered problems before. For example, in 2023, MAVEN experienced a malfunction in its orientation system.
According to Futurism
