NASA lost contact with the Mars probe

Phoenix, the ship that has found evidence of the existence of water on Mars, has lost contact with the NASA command center and its five-month mission is ending.

Experts from the US Aerospace Agency (NASA) predict that Phoenix will stop contacting Earth when it is frozen by the winter on Mars. But this device suddenly stops contacting after a dust storm that makes it impossible to get sunlight to generate electricity.

Phoenix was launched in August 2007 and landed in a northernmost area of ​​Mars in May 2008. It is in search of water and life support conditions on the red planet. The last signal ship to Earth on November 2. NASA said it will try to contact the device in three weeks, but said that the exploration campaign worth $ 475 million is considered to be over.

Phoenix probe ship.(Photo: news.sky.com)

" At this point we have ended our exploration efforts. We will constantly detect Phoenix radio signals, but don't expect to get in touch with it, " said Barry Goldstein, project director of ship exploration. Phoenix, said yesterday.

Phoenix has discovered signs of water existence after analyzing several soil samples on Mars. The ship also sent more than 25,000 photos to Earth. By the end of October this year, Phoenix had been operating for more than two months. The control center has turned off the heating and some devices to save energy for the probe.

Phoenix is ​​the sixth probe to successfully land on Mars and is the first device to safely land down on one of the two poles of the red planet.