The daily exchange of data between antennas on Earth and those on NASA spacecraft at Mars is about to get much quieter for a few weeks because of Mars solar conjunction.
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During Mars solar conjunction, Mars and Earth will be on opposite sides of the Sun. Solar conjunction occurs every two years.
The Sun expels hot, ionised gas from its corona, which extends far into space.
During solar conjunction, this gas can interfere with radio signals when engineers try to communicate with spacecraft at Mars, corrupting commands and resulting in unexpected behaviour from those space explorers.
To be safe, engineers hold off on sending commands when Mars disappears far enough behind the Sun's corona that there's increased risk of radio interference.
This time, the hold on issuing commands — called a “command moratorium” — will run from August 28 to September 7.
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