NASA has officially lost contact with a spacecraft that has been orbiting Mars since 2014.

The MAVEN spacecraft – Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution – abruptly lost contact with Earth on 6 December 2025 while passing behind the red planet in the normal course of its orbit. When MAVEN re-emerged from behind Mars, however, NASA ground control was unable to reestablish a connection.

On December 9, the space agency announced it is investigating the issue and attempting to locate a signal.

All systems had been working normally before MAVEN passed behind Mars.

MAVEN is one of a fleet of seven orbiters currently actively observing Mars. It launched from Earth in 2013 and reached Mars orbit in September 2014, tasked with studying the red planet's upper atmosphere and ionosphere, and how they interact with the solar wind.

By observing ongoing rates and mechanisms of atmospheric loss, MAVEN has given scientists the tools to understand how Mars may have changed from a once-wet planet to the cold, dry dustball it is today.