MAVEN MARS ORBITER CRISIS: NASA's Last Attempt After 40 Days of Silence | Astronomy Daily S05E15

Astronomy Daily: Space News UpdatesJanuary 17, 202600:36:14

MAVEN MARS ORBITER CRISIS: NASA's Last Attempt After 40 Days of Silence | Astronomy Daily S05E15

After more than a month of radio silence, NASA is making what could be its final attempt to contact the MAVEN Mars orbiter. Mission leaders say it's "very unlikely" they'll recover the decade-old spacecraft that has been studying the Martian atmosphere since 2014. We break down what went wrong, why recovery is so difficult, and what we'll lose if MAVEN is truly gone.

But it's not all bad news in space! The SpaceX Crew-11 astronauts have safely returned to Earth following the FIRST-EVER medical evacuation from the International Space Station—a flawlessly executed operation that shows NASA at its finest.

Plus: Europe's powerful new Ariane 64 rocket, groundbreaking asteroid defense research, China's lunar timekeeping breakthrough, and Hubble's stunning images of planet birth.

📅 Episode Date: January 15, 2026

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Intro: Today's Space News Roundup
1:15 - MAVEN Mars Orbiter Crisis: NASA's Final Recovery Attempt
6:45 - Historic ISS Medical Evacuation: Crew-11 Returns Safely
11:30 - Ariane 64 Debut: Europe's Heavy-Lift Rocket
14:20 - Asteroid Defense Breakthrough: Iron Rocks Are Tougher Than We Thought
17:00 - China's Lunar Timekeeping Software: The First Moon Clock
19:30 - Hubble's Planet Birthplaces: 35 Years and Still Discovering
22:15 - Outro & What's Next

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