Chapter 5 of 5

Quiet, not forgotten

Final contact, retirement and science that continued from the records

Told in InSight’s imagined voice · the events are real · source

This is NASA InSight's second full selfie on Mars.
InSightMy last selfie showed how much dust had gathered.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
01On April 24, 2022, I photographed my dusty deck and wings. As energy dwindled, the seismometer became the last science instrument still powered.
My last contact reached Earth on December 15.
02After two unsuccessful attempts to contact me, NASA announced the mission’s end on December 21, 2022. Controllers concluded that my solar-powered batteries had run out of energy.
This is NASA InSight's first full selfie on Mars.
InSightMy instruments went quiet. Their records did not disappear.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
03SEIS had detected 1,319 marsquakes. In 2023, scientists used recorded waves to refine their picture of Mars’ liquid iron core. A mission’s end does not freeze its scientific conclusions.
Another spacecraft looked back at the place where I stayed.
04MRO photographed me on October 23, 2024. By comparing images, scientists could study changing dust around the retired lander. I no longer had to send a new signal to be part of a new investigation.

The big idea

Discarded hardware and preserved measurements can remain scientifically valuable after a mission stops communicating.

Think about it

How can a silent lander still help scientists ask a new question?

Fact file

Last communication
15 December 2022
Last contact reported by NASA, not an invented final spoken message.
Source ↗
Mission-end announcement
21 December 2022
After two failed contact attempts, controllers concluded the batteries had run out of energy.
Source ↗
Marsquakes detected
1,319
NASA’s mission-end tally includes seismic events caused by meteoroid impacts.
Source ↗

In this chapter: Dust-covered solar arrays, batteries, SEIS records and MRO’s HiRISE camera

Sources: Main record · NASA InSight Study Provides Clearest Look Ever at Martian Core · NASA Mars Orbiter Spots Retired InSight Lander to Study Dust Movement · NASA’s New Mars Rover Is Ready for Space Lasers

Machine illustration: AI-made. Photos: NASA Image and Video Library, credited on each picture.

Chapter 5 of 5

Next book