NASA ended its InSight Mars mission after failing to reestablish contact for the second time. The final transmission took place on December 15th. The mission would be called dead after two failed communication attempts. The agency will continue to listen for a signal just in case, but the chances of that happening are considered unlikely.
NASA shared the news of InSight's impending demise on Monday when it posted the lander's final selfies to social media Dust has been accumulating on its solar panels since it arrived on the martian surface. NASA predicted earlier this year that the debris would make it hard for the landers to power themselves.
This may be the last image I can send because my power is low. My time here has been productive and peaceful. I will sign off here if I can keep talking to my team. I would like to thank you for being with me.
My power’s really low, so this may be the last image I can send. Don’t worry about me though: my time here has been both productive and serene. If I can keep talking to my mission team, I will – but I’ll be signing off here soon. Thanks for staying with me. pic.twitter.com/wkYKww15kQ
— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) December 19, 2022
The time on Mars was productive according to NASA. The landers collected data about the planet's deep interior for more than four years. At least one of the marsquakes was caused by a meteorite. The core of Mars is about half the size of Earth. Humans were given the chance to hear some of the sounds of the Red Planet by InSight.
It has lived up to it's name. Laurie Leshin, the director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said that it was a thrill to see what the landers achieved, thanks to an entire team of people across the globe. It is sad to say goodbye, but InSight will continue to inform and inspire.
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