NASA's Mars robots are on their own right now — here's why

Nasa's perseverance mars rover eyes the tiny ingenuity helicopter, which is resting on reddish, rocky ground a few feet away from it.

NASA has temporarily stopped sending commands to its Mars-exploring robots, but there's nothing to worry about.

We're currently experiencing a "Mars solar conjunction," a two-week stretch in which Earth and the Red Planet are situated on opposite sides of the sun. Mars mission teams halt commands during such alignments, which occur roughly every two years, for safety reasons.