NASA blames 'hero mode' culture for $4.6 million dish disaster

NASA staff accidentally broke a 230-foot-wide deep space antenna because they ran it on what investigators called "hero mode" — a culture that consistently called on them to step outside their training and improvise quick fixes. 

That approach helped keep the Deep Space Network's DSS-14 antenna online for years. But it also set the stage for a serious accident that caused up to $4.6 million in damage when the giant dish over-rotated and tore itself apart, according to a mishap investigation report. 

The mechanical failure happened on Sept. 16, 2025,  at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex near Barstow, California. The dish spun too far while tracking the Juno spacecraft orbiting Jupiter.

That mistake destroyed cabling, ruptured internal fire-suppression lines, and flooded the base structure with nearly 200,000 gallons of water. Mashable was among the first outlets to report on the accident. 

Investigators found that operators were trying to solve what looked to them like a safety-system glitch — and unknowingly disabled safeguards that prevent the antenna from moving past its limits.

When they saw water, the operators tried to park the antenna — but that only caused further destruction.

"Personnel described themselves (and were described by personnel at other sites) as 'willing to do whatever it takes to keep the antenna running,'" the NASA report says.

"Had GDSCC personnel acted with greater deliberation or shown more willingness to leave the antenna in a failed state at any point during the mishap, the undesired outcome likely would not have occurred."

The damage underscored the pressure NASA faces in keeping the aging Deep Space Network online with limited margins for error. The infrastructure operates on decades-old systems and dwindling numbers of staff who retain the necessary institutional memory.

Keeping those critical antennas running has increasingly depended upon informal protocols and workarounds, rather than fully documented procedures. 

Investigators found the Goldstone staff have often felt a cultural push to work long hours, troubleshoot during off-shifts, perform tasks outside their job descriptions, and skip any tests that might delay the antenna's return to service. 

A 70-meter antenna at the Goldstone Complex in California broke after over-rotating in September, triggering a mishap investigation. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech

"GDSCC personnel frequently referred to needing to be in 'hero mode' to maintain operations," according to the report.

The dish, sometimes called the Mars Antenna, is the largest at Goldstone — as large as a Boeing 747 jet. It is capable of tracking spacecraft traveling tens of billions of miles from Earth. 

NASA's Deep Space Network is the most powerful system on Earth for communicating with spacecraft. It commands and monitors more than 40 missions through three sites in California, Spain, and Australia.

Staff work around the clock so at least one complex can always reach spacecraft as the planet rotates.

It's not just aging hardware; the network itself is overburdened. Data load has risen sharply over the past 30 years, exceeding its original capacity by 40 percent. The NASA inspector general, who acts as the federal watchdog over the agency, has repeatedly pushed for upgrades.

Under the Deep Space Network Aperture Enhancement Program, the agency is adding six dishes, including a new 112-foot-wide antenna in California.

"The investigation at Goldstone made clear that we must strengthen our processes,"  said Joel Montalbano, acting associate administrator for NASA's space operations, in a statement. "NASA remains focused on learning from this and modernizing systems, so DSS-14 and the broader network are ready to support our ambitious future missions."

Though no one was hurt in the accident, NASA has classified the event as a Type A mishap, based on the total cost of the damages. The antenna will remain offline to complete repairs and previously planned upgrades. The agency doesn't expect the antenna to be back in service until October 2028.