NASA’s InSight Mars Lander to hibernate, trying not to die

NASA’s $ 800 million Mars lander is in an energy crisis.

InSight, which landed on a Martian plain called Elysium Planitia in 2018, detected more than 500 earthquakes on Mars, felt more than 10,000 dust demons pass by, and began measuring the core of the planet.

But over the past few months, InSight has fought for its life as the unpredictable weather on the Red Planet threatens to shut down the robot.

Unlike other sites where NASA sent rovers and landers – including the landing point of the new Perseverance rover and its helicopter on Mars – powerful gusts of wind did not sweep through Elysium Planitia. These winds, called “clean-up events,” are needed to blow Martian red dust off the solar panels of NASA robots. Without their help, a thick layer of dust has built up on InSight and it has trouble absorbing sunlight.

NASA / JPL-Caltech

InSight’s solar panels were producing only 27% of their energy capacity in February, when winter came to Elysium Planitia. NASA therefore decided to start gradually turning off various instruments on the lander. Soon the robot will go into “deep sleep mode”, shutting down all functions that are not necessary for its survival.

By disrupting its science operations, the lander should be able to conserve enough power to keep its systems warm during freezing Martian nights, when temperatures can drop to less than 130 degrees Fahrenheit.

“The amount of power available over the next few months will really depend on the weather,” Chuck Scott, InSight project manager, said in a statement.

InSight is still in good shape – it even uses its robotic arm – but the risk of a potentially fatal power outage is still present. If the batteries in the lander die, it may never recover.

“We hope we can bring him back to life, especially if he hasn’t been asleep or dead for a long time,” Bruce Banerdt, InSight’s lead investigator, told Insider. “But it would be a risky situation.”

The agency plans to restart all InSight operations after Mars returns to the sun in July. If it can survive this Martian winter, the lander could continue to listen to earthquakes and track the weather until 2022.

InSight could become a “ zombie ” after his death

NASA / JPL-Caltech / TAMU

InSight’s power shortage contributed to NASA’s decision to ditch the lander “mole” in January. This burrowing probe was supposed to measure the temperature deep inside the Martian crust – crucial data in the study of the history and internal structure of the planet.

Now scientists will miss even more data as the lander turns off its instruments. Its meteorological measurements on Mars have become scarce, and in the next month or so, it will stop listening to earthquakes.

Banerdt said he’s worried the lander will miss big earthquakes, but it’s worth it to keep the robot alive. If InSight’s batteries die, he added, “it’s a good zombie spaceship” – meaning it’s programmed to recharge and restart once the sun comes out.

“The problem with this scenario is that in the meantime the spacecraft is very, very cold. And that happens during the coldest part of the year for the spacecraft,” Banerdt said. “A lot of the electronics are pretty delicate. And it’s, unfortunately, quite likely that something is damaged by the cold.”

Banerdt suspects this is what happened to the Spirit and Opportunity rovers. The two ran out of energy on the Martian surface and were unable to re-energize. He hopes InSight doesn’t have to die, however.

“Right now our predictions, our projections are that we should be able to cross the weakest power point and come out the other side,” Banerdt said.

Still, a strange dust storm in the next four or five months could tip the scales by piling more dirt on InSight’s solar panels. This is what happened to Opportunity. Fortunately, it’s not the season for dust storms.

“We think we’re pretty well off, but Mars is unpredictable. We never know exactly what’s going to happen,” Banerdt said.

Fixed: An earlier version of this story stated that InSight was already in hibernation. The lander will not be in full hibernation mode until all of its science instruments are turned off.