When we talk about storms on Mars, the collective imagination evokes impetuous desert and buttering landscapes. However, what really dominates the skies of the red planet are less known but equally spectacular phenomena: The devils of Martian dusthuge columns of wind and dust that rises for kilometers in the soft atmosphere of the planet.
On Mars, the sun plays a fundamental role in the formation of these vortices. During the day, the sun heat warms the surface of the planet, which in turn warms the air in contact with the ground. When this hot air rises, a rotary motion is generated that captures the reddish powder on the ground, thus forming a swirling column that can touch the 20 kilometers in height.
Unlike terrestrial tornadoes, the devils of Martian dust are not fueled by thunderstorms. They are formed on serene days, and their size is surprisingly greater than terrestrial ones. The reason? The rarefied atmosphere and the low gravity Martianwhich allow these vortices to grow in height and to persist longer.
Observed by the orbit and the earth
The vortices of Martian dust They have been repeatedly immortalized by NASA missions. The probe Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter She managed to photograph one in 2012: a spiral that raised over 12 miles (about 20 kilometers) in the Amazonis Planitia region. But not only the tools in orbit have sighted them. Even the rover on the ground – like Curiosity, Perseverances, Spirit and Opportunities – have documented these spectacular atmospheric phenomena.
Curiosity, for example, managed to observe the shadow projected by a devil of about dust about 2 kilometersWhile Perseverance he made an unprecedented company in 2023: he recorded the audio of a vortexthanks to its sophisticated environmental sensors (meda). It was the First sound recording Never obtained an atmospheric event on another planet.
These vortices not only represent a fascinating phenomenon, but they are also fundamental elements in the Martian climate. In fact, they contribute to the suspension of dust in the atmosphere and, according to scientists, could be responsible for up to 30% of the suspension powder on the planet. In addition, in some cases, they proved to be even useful: the winds raised by the dust devils helped clean up solar panels of the Rover Spirit and Opportunities, prolonging its operational life.
