[From the InSight team]
InSight was such a special mission to us. As we wrap up the project, we thank you all for having been here to share in the adventure.
Discoveries from InSight and other Mars missions will continue. Follow along at mars.nasa.gov and @NASAMars.
ALT Composite image from Viking orbiter photos shows a global view of Mars. Valles Marineris, an enormous canyon system, stretches across most of the width of the planet in this view. Darker spots at the left mark three huge shield volcanoes of the Tharsis region.
My power’s really low, so this may be the last image I can send. Don’t worry about me though: my time here has been both productive and serene. If I can keep talking to my mission team, I will – but I’ll be signing off here soon. Thanks for staying with me.
ALT Wide-angle photo from NASA’s InSight lander on Mars shows the area in front of the lander in the late afternoon sun. Two science instruments tethered to the lander rest on the sandy surface nearby. Part of the lander’s robotic arm is visible extending down from the top left. Distortion from the wide-angle lens bends the distant horizon into a curved shape, while low-angle sunlight causes a small bluish lens flare on the right side.
Everyone should be so lucky to have a supportive community like you all. Thanks for all the kind postcards you’ve written. If you’d like to send well-wishes to me or my team back on Earth, I’m sure they’d love to read them. 💌
Send your postcard here: go.nasa.gov/3PkH4Ko
ALT Screenshot from interactive web experience shows six digital postcards sent to NASA's InSight Mars lander by members of the public. Cards feature photos of (and taken by) InSight, along with personal notes from the senders, such as, “You’re doing an amazing job!”, “Continue making the impossible possible!”, and “You rock!”
I’ve been lucky enough to live on two planets. Four years ago, I arrived safely at the second one, to the delight of my family back on the first. Thanks to my team for sending me on this journey of discovery. Hope I’ve done you proud.
Science highlights: go.nasa.gov/3Mi4pKw
ALT Animated GIF cycles through several photos from InSight’s landing on Mars and its early surface operations. Images show team members in matching red shirts celebrating in NASA/JPL’s mission control area, team members crowded around computer displays to see images from the lander, and also three such photos from InSight itself, showing the spacecraft on the dusty surface of Mars.
Time may be short for me, but I’ll keep sending back science for as long as I can. Meanwhile, I’m not the only bot on Mars. Keep exploring the Red Planet by following the adventures of:
@NASAPersevere@MarsCuriosity@NASAMars
And learn about the next team of explorers:
To the millions who sent your names with me: thanks for riding along. The two chips with your names may be dustier now (just like me), but we're here together on Mars, my forever home.
Future explorers, send your name on NASA’s next Mars mission: go.nasa.gov/3fa0qOK
ALT Animated image fades between two photos from NASA’s InSight lander on Mars. The two photos, taken about three-and-a-half years apart, show the top of the robotic lander, including two small chips mounted to its deck. A text overlay reading “You Are Here” points to the two chips. The first image shows a clean spacecraft with three main pieces of scientific equipment on top. In the latter image, those pieces of equipment are no longer visible (having since been placed on the surface of Mars), and the entire lander is coated in rusty-colored Martian dust.
Exploration isn’t just about the destination, but the friends you make along the journey. When there wasn’t enough power to take my own dust measurements, @NASAPersevere, @MarsCuriosity, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Mars Odyssey and @MAVEN2Mars all stepped in to help.
ALT Self-portrait photo from NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover shows the vehicle parked in front of a rock with two holes in it, from which the rover has extracted two rock samples. Tracks from the rover’s wheels are visible on the dusty ground surface in the background.
ALT Low-angle self-portrait photo from NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover shows the vehicle on a patch of rocky ground on Mars.
ALT Illustration of NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows the spacecraft in orbit above Mars, pointing its cameras down toward the surface. Parts of Mars and its atmosphere are reflected in the vehicle’s two large solar panels, which extend to either side. The top of the spacecraft features a large communications antenna, pointed to the left.
ALT Illustration of NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft at Mars shows the orbiter over the Red Planet, with solar panels deployed on either side of the vehicle and a scientific instrument boom extending upward.
International partners like @CNES, @DLR_en, and @InSight_IPGP helped set me up for collecting great science, while @ESA_TGO and the @NASAMars orbiters have helped me beam back all my findings.
ALT Illustration of the European Space Agency’s Trace Gas Orbiter in orbit around Mars. The vehicle features long solar panels extending from either side of a central spacecraft bus, with a communications antenna pointing to the right. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab
ALT Illustration of NASA’s Mars Odyssey spacecraft in orbit at Mars. The planet’s south polar ice cap is visible behind the orbiter, which features a large, offset solar panel and two extended booms for science instruments and a communications antenna.
My mission team headquartered at @NASAJPL kept me going from sol to sol, helping me gather the data that scientists around the world will mine for decades to come. It takes a Martian village! 🧡
ALT Posed group photo taken at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory features over 150 people, gathered on the steps in front of the facility’s main administration building. Trees frame the background, and a text overlay reads, “InSight Project Team, January 2018.”
ALT Posed group photo taken at Lockheed Martin shows around 100 people gathered in a grassy field, with buildings, trees, and mountains in the background.
I’m getting close to the end here, due to dust gathering on my solar panels, making it hard to generate power. People often ask: don’t I have a way to dust myself off (wiper, blower, etc.)? It’s a fair question, and the short answer is this: (🧵)
ALT Animated image sequence from NASA’s InSight lander on Mars shows photos of one of the lander’s solar panels at various stages throughout the mission. From the tenth Martian day of its mission (Sol 10) through Sols 106, 578, and 1211, more and more dust accumulation is seen, gradually covering and obscuring the details of the initially clean solar panel. Part of the lander’s robotic arm is seen at the top of the images.
A system like that would have added cost, mass, and complexity. The simplest, most cost-effective way to meet my goals was to bring solar panels big enough to power my whole mission – which they did (and then some!).
ALT Self-portrait photo from NASA’s InSight lander shows a wide-angle composite of images capturing the vehicle on the surface of Mars during the 10th day of its surface mission. In the middle is the deck of the lander, with various science instruments on board. Extending to either side are the lander’s two solar panels.
My goal was to study the Red Planet for one Mars year (about two Earth years), and I’ve been able to double that. The science I’ve collected has answered a lot of questions, and posed new ones for future explorers.
Top science results: go.nasa.gov/3Mi4pKw
ALT Mosaic image made from 102 NASA Viking Orbiter photos shows the full globe of Mars against a black background. Visible at the center of the rusty, reddish planet is Valles Marineris, an enormous canyon system around 1250 miles (~2000 kilometers) long, which stretches across most of the width of the planet in this view.
The day is coming when I’ll fall silent, ending my nearly four Earth years (over two Mars years) of studying the Red Planet. As my time winds down on Mars, my team is helping make sure scientists can get the most out of everything I’ve gathered.
More: go.nasa.gov/3SSYYEr
ALT Photo from NASA’s Insight lander on Mars shows a portion of the lander and one of its solar panels covered in a thin layer of dust. Part of the lander’s robotic arm is visible at the top of the image. In the background, a dusty, rocky plain stretches to a flat horizon.
I detected one of the biggest meteoroid impacts ever seen on Mars. I thought it was a marsquake until the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, flying overhead, imaged the impact crater, which excavated buried chunks of water-ice. That’s what friends are for!
News go.nasa.gov/3Fha7vL
ALT A close-up picture of the reddish-brown surface of Mars with a large crater captured by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The crater is in the middle of the image and has darker material, almost black inside due to the impact which excavated material from within, exposing chunks of water-ice shown as bluish-white around the edges of the crater.
🔴 LIVE NOW
As I get closer to wrapping up my mission due to waning power levels, my team is sharing a new discovery.
Use #AskNASA for questions youtu.be/z9C4yyqu3yI
LIVE NOW 🔴
Experts from the @NASAInSight and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter teams are sharing details about a new finding on the Red Planet. They'll also provide an update on InSight’s waning energy levels. x.com/i/broadcasts/1djGXlzBL…
Skies are darkening a bit here, but I’m okay for now. I’m staying calm, and conserving my energy for a while, until the skies clear. I’ll continue operating for as long as possible.
Latest news: go.nasa.gov/3CBdQkX
My surroundings are peaceful and tranquil, allowing me to pick up vibrations from deep inside Mars. But in a first, I’ve also captured seismic waves from a more dramatic source: several meteoroids impacting miles away.
Read more: go.nasa.gov/3SdeLxZ
🎧 Hear for yourself:
Thanks again for all the kind thoughts you’ve been sending. There’s still time to write me a note for the mission team to beam up to me! go.nasa.gov/3PkH4Ko
Feeling loved! Postcards are pouring in from around the world, sending well wishes to me and my team. The team is even collecting some of their favorites to beam up to me so I can keep them onboard forever. 💌
You can send your own here: go.nasa.gov/3PkH4Ko
ALT Screenshot from interactive web experience shows six digital postcards sent to InSight by members of the public
Feeling loved! Postcards are pouring in from around the world, sending well wishes to me and my team. The team is even collecting some of their favorites to beam up to me so I can keep them onboard forever. 💌
You can send your own here: go.nasa.gov/3PkH4Ko
ALT Screenshot from interactive web experience shows six digital postcards sent to InSight by members of the public