06/03/2026
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An anomaly onboard the Proba-3 mission’s Coronagraph spacecraft led to loss of contact between the spacecraft and ground control. The root cause of the anomaly is under investigation and mission teams are working hard to recover the situation.
During the weekend of 14–15 February 2026, an anomaly onboard Proba-3’s Coronagraph spacecraft triggered a chain reaction that led to the progressive loss of attitude (spacecraft orientation) and prevented the entry into safe mode.
Because the spacecraft’s solar panel was no longer facing the Sun, the onboard battery started to discharge quickly. This caused the spacecraft to enter survival mode, when minimum electronics are active and data transmission to the ground is interrupted.
The exact root cause of the anomaly is under investigation, and mission teams and operators have joined forces to attempt to re-establish contact with the spacecraft to recover the situation.
One of their priorities is to investigate how the mission’s Occulter spacecraft, which remains healthy and operational, could safely approach the Coronagraph and observe its orientation in space to support the recovery efforts.
Updates will be shared as new information becomes available.