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Mysterious Cloud on Mars Reveals Unseen Physics
Confirmed
In Short: Scientists using the European Space Agency’s Mars Express, in combination with a state-of-the-art meteorological model of the Red Planet, have found that there may be some very exotic physics behind Mars’s most curious cloud.
The Arsia Mons Elongated Cloud (AMEC), a long wispy ribbon downwind of the Arsia Mons volcano, forms, stretches, and fades within a single Martian day, growing up to 1,800 km (1,118 miles) long before evaporating.
Scientists using the European Space Agency’s Mars Express, in combination with a state-of-the-art meteorological model of the Red Planet, have found that there may be some very exotic physics behind Mars’s most curious cloud.
The AMEC has been observed repeatedly since its first revelation by Mars Express in 2018.
Researchers have now modeled the cloud’s formation for the first time, suggesting it may be driven by a physical process that has never been directly observed in any planet’s atmosphere.
On Earth, clouds usually form when water vapor creates droplets or ice crystals in the presence of tiny particles, such as dust or salt. However, the AMEC appears to form through so-called homogeneous nucleation, where vapor changes directly into ice crystals on its own without any help from debris.
Background
The AMEC was first revealed to the public in 2018 by the European Space Agency’s Mars Express, which has viewed the recurrent cloud repeatedly since.
Scientists have discovered a mysterious cloud on Mars, known as the Arsia Mons Elongated Cloud (AMEC), which may reveal physics never seen in nature.
What's confirmed
- “Once we included this physics in our simulations, the AMEC emerged just as we hoped.” On Earth, clouds usually form when water vapor creates droplets or ice crystals in the presence of tiny particles, such as dust or salt.
What's still developing
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- If it is successful, this will become the first time a sample has been returned from Mars or its moons to be analyzed in laboratories here on Earth.
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- NASA’s Curiosity rover has captured a breathtaking 360-degree view on Mars, revealing a landscape covered in unusual stone ridges known as boxwork patterns.