NASA shared video of purple rain falling on the Red Planet

These images were taken by NASA’s instrument MAVEN between May 14 and May 20 this year. The spacecraft kept orbiting Mars and capturing views of its night side. This instrument was launched 10 years ago in 2014. The US space agency will celebrate its 10th anniversary on Mars in September this year.

Aurora lights were tracked by NASA’s instrument as purple lights. Although these lights are not actually purple, this color was used to detect the presence of aurora on the sky of Mars. The brighter the color on the planet, the more auroras are present on the sky.

NASA’s instrument identified these auroras as waves of energetic particles from a solar storm. The US space agency explained in its Instagram post that the purple pattern on the planet suddenly stopped when the most energetic particles arrived and filled the instrument with noise.

How are auroras on Earth different from those on Mars?

Auroras are colorful lights that appear when energy particles from solar storms travel down a planet’s magnetic field lines. Auroras seen on Earth and other planets vary. Since planet Earth is shielded by a strong magnetic field, these lights are usually confined to areas near the poles.

Whereas, Mars has lost its internally generated magnetic field in ancient times. Therefore, when charged particles enter the Martian atmosphere, there is no protection from the onslaught of energetic particles. When charged particles hit the Martian atmosphere, it results in the production of aurorae that engulf the entire planet.

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Published: June 14, 2024, 03:04 PM IST