Mars Dust Storms
Written by Fraser Cain
Thanks to its thin atmosphere, we usually see a nice view of Mars. But from time to time, Mars dust storms break out, growing thousands of kilometers across. And occasionally, these storms can get so large they encircle the entire planet, covering everything in a thick haze of dust, and completely obscuring our view.
Planetary scientists aren't sure why the dust storms on Mars can get so fierce, large and long lasting.
The global dust storms not only shroud the planet, they actually warm up its atmosphere. During a recent dust storm back in 2001, the temperature of Mars' upper atmosphere rose by dozens of degrees. This is because sunlight warms up the airborne dust grains.
A typical Mars dust storm can take a few months to grow from a regional dust storm to a fully global storm. And then a few months later, cooler temperatures help the winds die down, the atmosphere can start to clear.
In 2007, NASA's Spirit and Opportunity rovers were caught in a large dust storm. Although they weren't damaged by the storm itself, the thick dust clogged the sky, decreasing the amount of energy received by their solar panels. If dust had clogged to thick on their panels, the rovers wouldn't have been able to generate enough energy to keep their electronics warm. Engineers were genuinely worried the rovers might not recover.
Here's an article describing how the dust storms threatened the Mars rovers, and another discussing how electrical dust storms could make life on Mars impossible.
Here's one of the best articles from NASA about the dust storms, and another gallery from NASA/JPL.
Finally, if you'd like to learn more about Mars in general, we have done several podcast episodes about the Red Planet at Astronomy Cast. Episode 52: Mars, and Episode 91: The Search for Water on Mars.
Filed under: Astronomy
