NASA has lost contact with the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft, a vital orbiter that has circled the Red Planet for over a decade, collecting atmospheric science data and serving as a critical communications link for surface missions.
The signal loss occurred on December 6, 2025, when the probe failed to resume communications after emerging from behind Mars, an event that frequently and temporarily blocks Earth-bound signals.
NASA Teams Work MAVEN Spacecraft Signal Loss
NASA’S MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN) spacecraft, in orbit around Mars, experienced a loss of signal with ground stations on Earth on Dec. 6. Telemetry from MAVEN had showed all subsystems working normally before it… pic.twitter.com/Sm45hXnOPA
— NASA Watch (@NASAWatch) December 10, 2025
The incident is currently being investigated by mission teams, who are analyzing telemetry to determine the cause of the anomaly, which has been described as a loss of the spacecraft’s ability to determine its orientation, forcing it into a protective safe mode.
The loss of MAVEN, which carries one of the largest relay loads, immediately threatens to disrupt high-speed data return from the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers on the Martian surface, although the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Odyssey provide redundancy.
This incident follows a history of navigation challenges for the aging orbiter, which successfully transitioned to an “all-stellar” navigation system in 2022 to compensate for degrading Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs).
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The current issue highlights the fragility of the Mars Relay Network, particularly as the MAVEN mission was proposed for zero funding in NASA’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget despite its crucial role.
