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NASA Officially Ends the MAVEN Mission Months After Losing Contact With the Mars Orbiter
Key takeaways
- An artistic rendition of the MAVEN spacecraft orbiting Mars NASA / GSFC On June 3, NASA officially said goodbye to its Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, orbiter.
- MAVEN’s journey came to an unexpected halt in late 2025.
- In February, NASA formed a review board to evaluate recovery efforts.
An artistic rendition of the MAVEN spacecraft orbiting Mars NASA / GSFC On June 3, NASA officially said goodbye to its Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, orbiter. The spacecraft spent more than a decade circling the Red Planet, gathering data on its atmosphere to help scientists understand how its gases may have escaped into space over time.
MAVEN’s journey came to an unexpected halt in late 2025. NASA last received a transmission on December 6, just before it flew behind Mars, relative to Earth. When it reemerged, the agency could no longer establish contact with the orbiter.
In February, NASA formed a review board to evaluate recovery efforts. Fragmentary data obtained in December showed that MAVEN had switched to safe mode and was unexpectedly rotating at “an unusually high rate,” according to a statement.