NASA’s Perseverance rover has made history by capturing the first-ever surface footage of a Martian aurora, a phenomenon previously observed from orbit but never from the planet’s surface. The discovery opens up new possibilities for auroral research and confirms that auroras could be visible to future astronauts on Mars.
Auroras occur when charged particles from the sun collide with molecules in planetary atmospheres. On Earth, this usually happens at high latitudes due to our magnetic field. However, Mars lacks a global magnetic field, which allows its atmosphere to interact differently with solar particles.
The Perseverance rover used its MastCam-Z camera system and SuperCam spectrometer to capture the aurora on March 15. The team calculated the best angle to point their instruments at the Martian sky and worked with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center to identify a coronal mass ejection (CME) that would trigger detectable auroral displays.
When the CME hit Mars’ atmosphere, it generated a green aurora that was visible across the planet’s skies. The rover’s observations were confirmed by other Mars orbiters, including MAVEN and Mars Express.
“This is a fantastic example of cross-mission coordination,” said Shannon Curry, Principal Investigator of MAVEN. “We’re thrilled to have finally gotten a sneak peek of what astronauts will be able to see on Mars someday.”
The study published in Science Advances highlights the importance of understanding auroras, which can affect spacecraft and people venturing beyond Earth’s magnetic bubble. Perseverance’s observations provide a new way to study these phenomena, complementing existing research from orbiters.
“This discovery is especially important as we prepare to send human explorers to Mars safely,” said Katie Stack Morgan, acting project scientist for Perseverance at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Source: https://www.space.com/astronomy/mars/perseverance-mars-rover-becomes-1st-spacecraft-to-spot-auroras-from-the-surface-of-another-world