NASA has lost contact with one of its TRACERS spacecraft and the Athena EPIC satellite has failed to send a beacon signal. Both spacecraft were launched on July 23. The TRACERS SV1 encountered power issues due to insufficient sunlight on solar panels starting July 25. Engineers are hopeful that sunlight in late August will allow them to reestablish communication. The second TRACERS spacecraft is healthy. The Athena EPIC satellite has yet to send expected signals to assist in its mission support design.
NASA is facing difficulties with two spacecraft: TRACERS has lost contact, while Athena EPIC hasn't sent an important beacon signal after their launch on July 23.
The TRACERS SV1 spacecraft began power system issues on July 25, leading to a communication loss. Engineers suspect insufficient sunlight on solar panels is the cause.
Only one of the TRACERS spacecraft is operational and can currently send data, although the other vehicle is expected to come online with increased sunlight.
Athena EPIC is designed as a scalable satellite platform to share resources for future missions but has yet to communicate with Earth post-launch.
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