NASA's longest-working rover on Mars has been declared dead after 15 years and a 45-kilometre trawl across on the planet. Eight months ago, Opportunity went silent during a raging dust storm, and despite more than 800 attempts to make contact with the solar-powered machine, the American space agency has had no luck. The gold cart-sized machine helped build the foundation for future space travel to the Red Planet, with missions from the US, China, Russia, the Middle East and private companies like SpaceX all working on future missions. Opportunity was originally designed to survive for 90 days on a hunt for signs of water. Image: NASA/JPL/Cornell University
