“It’s “very unlikely” NASA will be able to recover the MAVEN Mars orbiter, NASA planetary science division director Louise Prockter says at the Small Bodies Assessment Group meeting this morning. Efforts to restore contact will resume Friday, after solar conjunction ends.”

https://x.com/i/status/2011089344602202471

At some point in the coming weeks — after post-conjunction efforts turn up no results — NASA will make it official, I assume.

To spell it out: “The three crew members remaining aboard the orbital outpost, Kud-Sverchkov with Chris Williams of NASA and Sergey Mikaev of Roscosmos will await the arrival of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 members Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, both from NASA, Sophie Adenot of ESA (European Space Agency), and Andrey Fedyaev of Roscosmos. Crew-12 is due to launch to the space station in February and join Expedition 74 for a nine-month-long space research mission.”

Not sure I’m following your logic, Jeff.

That right there is why America needs an Energia/Buran type Shuttle 2

The 747 orbiter ferry or whatever for low speed tests, with a side-mount SLS to release Buran size craft for re-entry.

After that is done—THEN you build a for-profit RLV.

Musk has it the wrong way around.