NASA's Mars orbiter MAVEN faces 'very unlikely' recovery
NASA hasn't heard from its MAVEN spacecraft since December 6, 2025, after it failed to reestablish contact when it emerged from behind Mars.
The probe seems to have spun off course, and engineers are still trying to reconnect, though hopes are fading.
Recovery efforts have been restarted after solar conjunction
After a pause for a solar conjunction, NASA has restarted recovery efforts with help from the Deep Space Network and Green Bank Observatory.
NASA has assembled an anomaly review board to investigate the issue and assess recovery options, but as Louise Prockter director of NASA's Planetary Science Division puts it, getting MAVEN back is "very unlikely."
MAVEN's loss would impact future Mars science
MAVEN has been orbiting Mars since 2014, studying how the planet's atmosphere is disappearing.
It also helps send data between Earth and the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers: about one in five messages rely on it.
If MAVEN can't be recovered, future Mars science could take a real hit.