InSight operations will end later this year due to the amount of dust on Mars.
The farewell to NASA ‘s InSight module has been sealed with one last selfie with its worst enemy on Mars : dust.
The NASA team took a picture where you can see how all the solar panels that power the team are full of dust.
The photograph was taken on April 24, the 1,211th Martian day of the mission. In the GIF, it is possible to see how InSight looked in 2018.
Before losing more solar energy, I took some time to take in my surroundings and snapped my final selfie before I rest my arm and camera permanently in the stowed position.
More on my final months ahead: https://t.co/eATDXbOlx2 pic.twitter.com/q7gso8NSjv
— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) May 24, 2022
Why is the last photo?
Dust on the solar panels prohibits InSight from recharging to keep working , and the module’s arm needs to move several times to take more pictures.
As a consequence of the lower energy received, NASA will put the robotic arm to rest this month, causing no more photos to be taken.