NASA is attempting to regain contact with one of the TRACERS mission satellites after it went astray in the darkness of space.

On July 23, 2025, NASA launched the TRACERS (Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites) mission.

It is composed of two twin satellites, Space Vehicle 1 (SV1) and Space Vehicle 2 (SV2), designed to study how the Earth's magnetic field protects the planet from the effects of space weather.

The mission aims to record 3,000 measurements annually to obtain detailed images of magnetic reconnection, a phenomenon that occurs when solar activity interacts with Earth's magnetic field.

This process is key to better understanding the impact of solar storms on the atmosphere and human technology, as well as preparing for their effects.

According to the scientific organization, contact with the SV1 satellite was lost on July 25 due to a failure in its power subsystem .

Before the outage, intermittent communications were recorded indicating that the spacecraft could only operate when receiving sufficient power from its solar panels.

Due to SV1's current orientation, sunlight capture is limited. Teams estimate the next opportunity to reestablish contact and implement additional recovery measures will be in late August , when the solar panels will receive more sunlight exposure.

The mission team continues to review data collected by the spacecraft prior to the loss of communications , in order to diagnose the exact cause and define the next steps.

If contact is reestablished, the status of SV1 and any potential impact on the mission's scientific objectives will be assessed.

The SV2 satellite remains in good condition and has begun commissioning, which includes the activation and calibration of its instruments.

According to NASA, the process is progressing as planned and is expected to be completed by the end of August.

The TRACERS mission aims to further study magnetic reconnection, a phenomenon that influences the formation of auroras and variations in space weather.

*This content was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence, based on publicly available information released to media outlets. It was also reviewed by a journalist and an editor.