Talking about a groundbreaking achievement, NASA‘s Perseverance rover recorded the first aurora to be observed on Mars, which is like a moonrise. This marks a significant milestone in planetary science and in the understanding of our Martian atmosphere.
Perseverance Capture First: A Historic Observation
During a period of heightened solar activity around March 18, 2024, a powerful solar flare and subsequent coronal mass ejection (CME) occur that stream directly towards and charge the particles of Mars.
Unlike Earth, Mars has a global magnetic field that is weak enough to allow these solar particles to directly interact with its upper atmosphere. This interaction results in a faint green glow, which is an aurora, which is visible in the planet’s night sky.
Just like previous Martian auroras which were detected from ultraviolet wavelengths which occurred while the spacecraft was orbiting, but this event was unique.
This is the first time that an aurora (a moon), has been captured in visible light from the surface of a planet by the Perseverance rover. And we should thank the advanced imaging capabilities of Perseverance’s Mascan-Z and the Surcam instruments.
The Role of Perseverance
The Perseverance rover, which has been exploring the Jezero crater since it landed on Mars in February 2021, is strategically located in a position from which such a rare event could be captured.
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The scientists took three days to do this and then went there and noticed the solar storm and gave the coordinates for the rover to the Perseverance team that was scheduling it.
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The rover’s instruments successfully recorded the green aurora that provides a lot of valuable information about the Martian atmosphere during solar activity.
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This observation not only says that auroras can be visible to the human eye on Mars under certain conditions, but it also opens up many new avenues for the study of space weather on the red planet.
Implications for Future Exploration
This ability that we can observe visible light auroras on Mars has deep implications for future manned missions. Understanding how solar storms affect the Martian atmosphere can ensure the safety of astronauts as much as possible, which could become a habit on this planet in the future. If you say more, being a witness to such natural spectacles is good for our psychological well-being and also for future explorers.
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Elise Wright Knutsen is a researcher at the University of Oslo and the lead author whose study has been published in Science Advances, who says that: “This is the first time we have reported on how aurorae are observed on planets other than Earth and enables predictions of aurorae on Mars and for advanced studies of Martian space weather”.
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A New Chapter in Martian Exploration
This historic observation was made by the Perseverance rover, which underscores this, and there are many such multifact missions for the future. Its primary objectives are to search for ancient microbial life and collect rock samples, which Perseverance is providing continuously by taking insights into the Martian’s atmospheric dynamics and surface.
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As we are getting closer to future missions and human exploration of Mars, such discoveries are not only deep for our scientific understanding but they also inspire us with a sense of wonders and the natural beauty of the red planet.
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Stay tuned to MarsySpace News for more updates on Martian exploration and discoveries.
