NASA's Nightmare Came True After InSight Lander Went Offline Due To Extreme Dust Storms, Cutting Communication Line With Ground Team

NASA's InSight lander is facing a problem right now as one of the Mars mission team's worst nightmares comes true. Science Times previously reported that a massive regional dust storm has affected the lander and forced it to shift into safe mode to protect itself. It has been staying steady so far.

However, the dust has covered the InSight lander's solar panel and forced it to go offline. Scientists said that dust storms on Mars are violent and dramatic in that they can cover regions or even the entire planet. They pointed out that dust storms and extreme weather conditions on the Red Planet have caused it to lose its waters millions of years ago.

(Photo : FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
A replica of the InSight Mars Lander is on display at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California on November 26, 2018

Mars Mission Team Waits for the Dust Storm to Subside

NASA has assured that the InSight lander holds stable and is in good health despite having low power, Science Rant reported. However, the InSight lander has already stopped its weather readings and other experiments to conserve its remaining energy.

That means the ground team on Earth can no longer communicate with the lander as its low power does not allow communication between it and NASA. As of now, scientists are patiently waiting for the dust storm to clear before they can check how much dust is on the panels and work on it.

On the other hand, many scientists hope that the whirlwinds could work in their favor and save the lander. But there seems to be no sign of that happening for now. The American space agency has built the lander an arm that it could use for doing scientific experiments and is using it to help drill into the Martian surface.

Scientists are also controlling the arm to dust off the solar panels by picking up the sand and letting it be blown by the wind. However, this task requires a lot of energy, so this is now out of the question as the lander is in safe mode.

Some groups have been asking about the lack of a dust-off system of the lander in which NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) team has not given any valid reason yet. NASA scientists are hopeful that the lander will be out of its safe mode next week but have not yet released any plans on recovering the small lander covered in Martian dust.

ALSO READ: Could Sparkling Dust Particles From Martian Dust Storm Affect Mars Perseverance Rover?

Facts About Mars Dust Storms

Mars is infamous for its insane dust storms, which are visible from Earth using telescopes. Planetary scientist Michael Smith from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt in Maryland explained that Mars has annual big dust storms that can cover regions as big as continents here on Earth and last for weeks.

NASA added that Mars has also experienced massive dust storms that are larger and more intense. Smith said they could come once every three Martian years or equivalent to five and a half Earth years on average. These dust storms circle the planet. Hence, scientists have called them global dust storms to separate them from the annual dust storms on Mars.

Moreover, scientists said that these dust storms are unlikely to strand an astronaut on the Red Planet even during the largest dust storms because it does not have the power to rip apart major mechanical equipment. They said that the strongest Martian storm was only about 60 miles per hour, less than the hurricane winds on Earth.

Also, the atmosphere on Mars is less than 1% denser than the Earth's. Plasma physicist Willam Farrell said that atmospheric pressure is the main factor in the difference between the storms on Earth and Mars.