MAVEN
Sign in to saveMAVEN is a NASA spacecraft orbiting Mars to study the loss of its atmospheric gases to space, providing insight into the history of the planet's climate and water. The name is an acronym for "Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution" while the word maven also denotes "a person who has special knowledge or experience; an expert".
Key facts
- Spaceflight.name
- Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution
- Spaceflight.names_list
- MAVEN
- Spaceflight.image
- MAVEN spacecraft model.png
- Spaceflight.image_caption
- Artist's rendering of the MAVEN spacecraft bus
- Spaceflight.image_size
- 300px
- Spaceflight.mission_type
- Mars orbiter
- Spaceflight.operator
- NASA
- Spaceflight.COSPAR_ID
- 2013-063A
- Spaceflight.SATCAT
- 39378
- Spaceflight.manufacturer
- Lockheed Martin
- Spaceflight.dimensions
- 2.3 m × 2.3 m × 2 m
- Spaceflight.power
- 1,135 watts
- Spaceflight.launch_date
- 18 November 2013, 18:28:00 UTC
- Spaceflight.launch_rocket
- Atlas V 401AV-038
- Spaceflight.launch_site
- Cape Canaveral, SLC-41
- Spaceflight.launch_contractor
- United Launch Alliance
- Spaceflight.disposal_type
- Spacecraft failure
- Spaceflight.last_contact
- 6 December 2025
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
18 sectionsContents
- Pre-launch
- Objectives
- Timeline
- Spacecraft overview
- Relay telecommunications
- Scientific instruments
- Cost
- Results
- Atmospheric loss
- Different types of aurora
- Interaction with a comet
- Detection of metal ions
- Impacts on future exploration
- Communication loss
- Gallery
- See also
- References
- External links
MAVEN is a NASA spacecraft orbiting Mars to study the loss of its atmospheric gases to space, providing insight into the history of the planet's climate and water. The name is an acronym for "Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution" while the word maven also denotes "a person who has special knowledge or experience; an expert".
MAVEN was launched on an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, on 18 November 2013 and went into orbit around Mars on 22 September 2014. It is the first NASA mission to study the Mars atmosphere. The probe is analyzing the planet's upper atmosphere and ionosphere to examine how and at what rate the solar wind is stripping away volatile compounds.