MAVEN
Artist's rendering of the MAVEN spacecraft bus | |||||||||||||||||||
| Names | MAVEN | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mission type | Mars orbiter | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operator | NASA | ||||||||||||||||||
| COSPAR ID | 2013-063A | ||||||||||||||||||
| SATCAT no. | 39378 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Mission duration |
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| Spacecraft properties | |||||||||||||||||||
| Manufacturer | Lockheed Martin | ||||||||||||||||||
| Launch mass | 2,454 kg (5,410 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Dry mass | 809 kg (1,784 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Payload mass | 65 kg (143 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Dimensions | 2.3 m × 2.3 m × 2 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Power | 1,135 watts | ||||||||||||||||||
| Start of mission | |||||||||||||||||||
| Launch date | 18 November 2013, 18:28:00 UTC | ||||||||||||||||||
| Rocket | Atlas V 401 AV-038 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral, SLC-41 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Contractor | United Launch Alliance | ||||||||||||||||||
| End of mission | |||||||||||||||||||
| Disposal | Spacecraft failure | ||||||||||||||||||
| Last contact | 6 December 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Orbital parameters | |||||||||||||||||||
| Reference system | Areocentric | ||||||||||||||||||
| Periareon altitude | 180 km (110 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Apoareon altitude | 4,500 km (2,800 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Inclination | 75° | ||||||||||||||||||
| Period | 3.6 hours | ||||||||||||||||||
| Mars orbiter | |||||||||||||||||||
| Orbital insertion | 22 September 2014, 02:24 UTC MSD 50025 08:07 AMT | ||||||||||||||||||
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Maven mission logo | |||||||||||||||||||
MAVEN is a NASA spacecraft orbiting Mars to study the loss of its atmospheric gases to space, providing insight into the history of the planet's climate and water. The name is an acronym for "Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution" while the word maven also denotes "a person who has special knowledge or experience; an expert".
MAVEN was launched on an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, on 18 November 2013 and went into orbit around Mars on 22 September 2014. It is the first NASA mission to study the Mars atmosphere. The probe is analyzing the planet's upper atmosphere and ionosphere to examine how and at what rate the solar wind is stripping away volatile compounds.
The principal investigator for the mission is Shannon Curry at the University of California, Berkeley. She took over from Bruce Jakosky of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado Boulder, who proposed and led the mission until 2021. The project cost $582.5 million to build, launch, and operate through its two-year prime mission.
On 6 December 2025, MAVEN lost contact with Earth. Recovery efforts at NASA's Deep Space Network are underway, however, contact has not been re-established as of January 2026. A review board has been convened to look at the presumed failure.