Mars Exploration   Space Exploration & Science Missions   NASA  

NASA declares MAVEN Mars orbiter dead after six months of radio silence

NASA has ended the MAVEN mission, declaring the long-running Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution spacecraft lost after months of failed contact. The $582 million orbiter suffered a problem on the far side of Mars late last year, following which it has remained unresponsive.

Discovered 2026-06-03T06:57:22.628694-07:00 | 2026-06-03T06:57:22.628694-07:00

Briefing

What Hype is tracking

  • MAVEN’s loss marks the end of a $582 million, over-a-decade Mars-atmosphere study program—reducing near-term orbital capacity for Mars science.
  • NASA’s decision follows a prolonged attempt to reestablish contact after the silent period began; see the agency’s earlier “still looking” efforts in MAVEN’s outage context.
  • The announced anomaly on Mars’ far side and inability to recover signal operational and contingency gaps that will inform how future Mars orbiters are designed, commanded, and managed.

Reported By

astronomy.com Fox Weather NASA Spaceflight orbitaltoday.com spacetoday.com.br Ars Technica
Sources Tracked
32
First Seen
2026-06-03T06:57:22.628694-07:00
Latest Update
2026-06-09T08:41:46.498755-07:00
Coverage
Space

Sources

Hype groups these reports into one evolving story so you can compare coverage without losing the thread.

Related Coverage