NASA Loses Contact with Long-Serving MAVEN Mars Orbiter

Why in the News?

NASA has lost communication with its MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) spacecraft, which has been orbiting Mars since 2014, after it went silent in early December, raising concerns over a key mission studying Martian atmospheric loss and conducting environmental impact assessments similar to Earth’s environmental impact assessment processes.

MAVEN Mission: Role and Scientific Importance

• MAVEN was designed to study how Mars lost its atmosphere, transforming from a planet with liquid water to a pollution free environment, applying principles similar to Earth’s precautionary principle in space research.
• The spacecraft measures the upper atmosphere, ionosphere, and interactions with solar wind and sunlight, providing insights comparable to Earth’s coastal regulation zone studies but on a planetary scale.
• By sampling different orbital heights, MAVEN tracks how Mars’ atmosphere changes with season, time of day, and solar activity, offering a unique perspective on atmospheric dynamics.
• Its findings have helped scientists understand planetary habitability and atmospheric evolution through comprehensive environmental impact assessments, contributing to our knowledge of both Mars and Earth’s environmental processes.
• Beyond science, MAVEN plays a critical operational role as a communication relay, transmitting data between Earth and surface rovers like Curiosity and Perseverance, similar to how environmental data is relayed on Earth.

Loss of Contact and NASA’s Response

• MAVEN transmitted its last full health status data on December 4.
• On December 6, it passed behind Mars, a routine communication blackout known as occultation.
• However, after re-emergence, NASA’s Deep Space Network failed to detect MAVEN’s expected signal, prompting a response similar to obtaining an environmental clearance for recovery procedures.
• A partial recovery of tracking data suggested the spacecraft was rotating abnormally and its orbital parameters may have changed, necessitating a thorough assessment akin to an EIA notification process.
• NASA has not yet identified the cause but has shifted relay duties to other orbiters like Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Odyssey, with support from European spacecraft. The agency is working on obtaining necessary environmental clearances to implement recovery procedures, applying Earth’s environmental protocols to space operations.