UNITED STATES: Scientists revealed the audio of a dust devil on Mars that NASA’s Perseverance rover recorded on Tuesday. The sound, which swiveled at a speed of 40 kmph and sounded like dust devils on earth, was audible.
However, because Mars’ atmosphere produces softer sounds and weaker winds, it was relatively silent.
The dust devil swiftly swept over Perseverance last year, which is why the audio was only briefly caught, claims Naomi Murdoch of the University of Toulouse, who is the study’s main author.
The weather-monitoring equipment collected data while the navigation camera on the rover took pictures.
The scientists hope that the tape will aid in their understanding of Mars’ weather and climate and how the planet’s dry surface and tenuous atmosphere may have once sustained life.
Dust devils are brief whirlwinds that arise when there is a significant temperature difference between the air and the ground.
They are a familiar sight in the Jezero crater, where the Perseverance rover has been operating since February 2021. Still, the rover had never before been able to capture audio of one of them.
On September 27, 2021, a dust devil 25 metres wide and 118 metres high by chance flew directly above the rover.
This time, the dust devil’s muffled whirring sounds were captured by the rover’s SuperCam microphone, which had earlier captured the first audio ever from the Martian surface.
According to Murdoch, these records make it possible for researchers to examine the Martian wind, air turbulence, and dust movement like never before. According to sources, the findings “show exactly how significant acoustic data may be in space research.”
Also Read: SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Rocket Launched UAE Rover and Japanese Lander
