By- Srishti Verma
The United States of America has been continuously present on Mars for more than twenty years.
Space agencies have been investigating whether or not the planet was formerly home to life by employing spacecraft.
But every two years, an astronomical phenomenon called solar conjunction causes these spacecraft to go without communication for around two weeks.
The term "solar conjunction" refers to the moment when the Sun blocks out Earth and Mars in their ongoing orbit around it. The two planets are momentarily rendered invisible to one another by this cosmic alignment.
According to NASA, the solar conjunction ban for Mars spacecraft commanding in 2023 is set to last from November 11 to November 25, when Mars will be near two degrees of the Sun.
Due to the Sun's interference with radio transmissions from the spacecraft, communication with any spacecraft at solar conjunction will be severely limited during this time.
During solar conjunction, Mars receives no fresh commands. The spacecraft could be at risk from the unpredictable information that could be lost as a result of interference from charged particles from the Sun. Rather,
Engineers wait and send two weeks' worth of instructions ahead of time. Prior to solar conjunction, mission teams make sure that all required commands are sent up.