Space and Physics
PUBLISHED
NASA's InSight is likely about to end its mission. The lander has shared its latest – and probably last – image with mission control, and it is struggling with power. Dust covers its solar panels, and with fewer hours of sunlight due to the changing seasons, there is not enough juice to keep it going.
The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.NASA has now confirmed that InSight missed its communication on Sunday, December 18. They haven't heard from it since December 15. The procedure is to wait for two missed communication to confirm that the mission has indeed ended. There will be no further attempts at establishing contact.
The mission has lasted over twice as long as originally intended, measuring marsquakes, meteor impacts, and the internal properties of Mars. The lander's seismometer continued to work to the very last moment continuing to produce data that will be analyzed for decades to come.
