This is due to a scientific phenomenon known as solar conjunction: the period during which the Sun shields Mars and Earth from each other
This was reported by Science Alert.
“Like dancers on either side of a huge bonfire,” NASA says, “the two planets are temporarily invisible to each other.
Earth and Mars experience a solar conjunction every two years, according to NASA. The two planets are on average 140 million miles apart – but during a solar conjunction, they will be separated by about 235 million miles.
Solar connectivity also affects NASA’s ability to communicate with and send signals to spacecraft on Mars.
“There is no way to predict what information might be lost due to interference from charged particles from the sun, and this lost information could potentially endanger the spacecraft,” NASA said. – “Instead, engineers send two weeks’ worth of instructions before the solar conjunction and wait.
Scientists emphasized that this does not mean that missions to Mars will be interrupted.
“Our mission teams have spent months preparing to-do lists for all of our Mars spacecraft,” said Roy Gladden, Mars Relay Network manager, in a statement from NASA.
Ukrainian engineer Sergiy Yakymov has been appointed head of the Mars Research Station in the San Rafael Desert in Utah, USA.
