Two Space Probes Are Facing Serious Issues Just Days After Launch

If you need yet another reminder that space travel is ridiculously complicated, two freshly launched probes have already run into trouble. On February 26, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched from Kennedy Space Center, with a payload that included NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer and Astroforge’s Odin. By February 28, both had experienced communications issues with their handlers back on Earth. In a statement, NASA said that, while Lunar Trailblazer had deployed from the rocket after reaching space without incident, mission control soon began receiving troubling data about the spacecraft’s power systems. At 7:30 a.m. ET on February 27, communication with Trailblazer was lost, only to be regained several hours later. “The team now is working with NASA ground stations to reestablish telemetry and commanding to better assess the power system issues and develop potential solutions,” said NASA. Lunar Trailblazer, designed to orbit the Moon, was built to search for clues about the location and stat ... Read full article.