Has NASA ever lost contact with a Space Shuttle?

[ambrous]

S_G. Thanks. I do realize that the early US missions did have better coverage with it's many ground sites around the globe and ships, also.

 

[ldyaidan]

Would something like a massive solar flare/storm create the kind of interruption you are looking for? Since it's fiction, you could come up with any number of space abnormalities that could disrupt the signal...