Martian Dust Devil Trails
Explanation:
Who's
been marking up Mars?
This portion of a recent
high-resolution picture from
the
HiRISE camera
on board the
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows twisting
dark trails criss-crossing light colored terrain on the martian surface.
Newly formed trails like these had presented researchers
with
a tantalizing martian mystery but are now known to be the work of miniature
wind vortices known to occur on
the red planet -
martian dust devils.
Such
spinning columns of
rising air
heated by the warm surface
are also common in dry and desert areas on
planet Earth.
Typically lasting only a few minutes,
dust devils becoming visible
as they pick up loose red-colored dust leaving the darker and heavier sand beneath
intact.
On Mars,
dust devils can be up to 8 kilometers
high.
Dust devils have been credited with
unexpected
cleanings of mars rover solar panels.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
