The rescue of the European Space Agency/ NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), which was lost in space on 25 June, has been completed with a successful "attitude recovery" operation. The spacecraft is now pointing at the sun again, following weeks of careful manoeuvring after a powerful radio telescope located the SOHO, having detected very weak signals.
The loss of contact with the SOHO last June was caused by mistakes by ground controllers. The SOHO fell silent when ground controllers appear to have ignored normal procedures, allowing the craft to lose its orientation. The craft's solar panels were unable to produce electricity and its batteries soon drained, initially preventing radio commands from being sent from earth.
Source: Flight International