Silenced by intense Mars dust storm, Nasa makes final attempt to contact rover Opportunity before farewell

If there is no response to the space agency’s commands by Wednesday, the vehicle will be declared dead 15 years after arriving at the red planet

Its identical twin, Spirit, was pronounced dead in 2011, a year after it got stuck in sand and communication ceased

Reading Time:3 minutes

FILE - This illustration made available by NASA shows the rover Opportunity on the surface of Mars. The exploratory vehicle landed on Jan. 24, 2004, and logged more than 28 miles (45 kilometers) before falling silent during a global dust storm in June 2018. There was so much dust in the Martian atmosphere that sunlight could not reach Opportunity's solar panels for power generation. (NASA via AP)

Published: 12:32pm, 13 Feb 2019Updated: 12:42pm, 13 Feb 2019

Nasa is trying one last time to contact its record-setting Mars rover Opportunity before calling it quits, after one of the most intense dust storms recorded rendered the rover silent for the past eight months.

Thick dust darkened the sky last summer and, for months, blocked sunlight from the spacecraft’s solar panels.

Nasa said on Tuesday it will issue a final series of recovery commands, on top of more than 1,000 already sent. If there’s no response by Wednesday – which Nasa suspects will be the case – Opportunity will be declared dead, 15 years after arriving at the red planet.

Team members are already looking back at Opportunity’s achievements, including confirmation water once flowed on Mars. Opportunity was, by far, the longest lasting lander on Mars. Besides endurance, the six-wheeled rover set a roaming record of 45km (28 miles).

Its identical twin, Spirit, was pronounced dead in 2011, a year after it got stuck in sand and communication ceased.

This March 31, 2016 photo shows a dust devil in a valley on Mars, seen by the Opportunity rover perched on a ridge. Photo: AP