Tag Archives: atmosphere

MARCI weather report, October 10-16, 2016

A slight increase in local-scale dust activity was observed on Mars last week. Looking to the southern highlands, transient dust storms were spotted over Cimmeria, Sirenum, and Aonia on multiple sols. Local-scale dust activity was also observed propagating southward from … Continue reading

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MAVEN: Ups & downs of water escape from Mars

After investigating the upper atmosphere of the Red Planet for a full Martian year, MAVEN has determined that escaping water does not always go gently into space. Sophisticated measurements made by a suite of instruments on the MAVEN spacecraft revealed … Continue reading

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MAVEN: New view of Mars in ultraviolet

New global images of Mars from the MAVEN mission show the ultraviolet glow from the Martian atmosphere in unprecedented detail, revealing dynamic, previously invisible behavior. They include the first images of “nightglow” that can be used to show how winds … Continue reading

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MARCI weather report: Oct 3-9, 2016

Dust-lifting activity across Mars was relatively uneventful compared to that of previous weeks. Looking to the northern hemisphere, short-lived dust storms and water-ice clouds occurred along the north polar hood. A bit further to the south, a solitary local dust … Continue reading

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Big global dust storm starting soon?

Global dust storms on Mars could soon become more predictable — which would be a boon for future astronauts there — if the next one follows a pattern suggested by those in the past. A published prediction, based on this … Continue reading

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MARCI weather report, Sept 26-Oct 2, 2016

The large dust storms east of Elysium which were mentioned in the previous report, quickly subsided after coalescing. Shortly thereafter, a subsequent dust storm appeared and moved southward across Amazonis. In the second half of the week, a dust storm … Continue reading

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MAVEN completes one Mars year at Mars

Today [October 3], MAVEN has completed one Mars year of science observations. One Mars year is just under two Earth years. MAVEN launched on Nov. 18, 2013, and went into orbit around Mars on Sept. 21, 2014. During its time … Continue reading

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Cosmic rays hit Mars crust, help make atmosphere

NASA’s Curiosity rover has found evidence that chemistry in the surface material on Mars contributed dynamically to the makeup of its atmosphere over time. It’s another clue that the history of the Red Planet’s atmosphere is more complex and interesting … Continue reading

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MARCI weather report, September 19-25, 2016

Last week on Mars, a dust haze continued to loom over Noachis and other regions of the southern highlands. A bit further to the south, small local-scale dust storms were observed along the receding seasonal south polar ice cap edge. … Continue reading

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MARCI weather report, September 12-18, 2016

The diffuse, dusty conditions over Noachis and the southern mid-latitudes was all that remained of the regional dust storm that occurred earlier in the month. There was an indication at the beginning of the week, that the storm had entered … Continue reading

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