ESA Mars Express Captures 30 Dust Devils in Mars' 1,000-Km Mamers Valles
Updated
Updated · Space.com · Jun 18
ESA Mars Express Captures 30 Dust Devils in Mars' 1,000-Km Mamers Valles
3 articles · Updated · Space.com · Jun 18
Summary
Mars Express returned a new image of Mamers Valles showing 30 dust devils scattered through the Martian valley system, with ESA marking each vortex in the scene.
Dust devils matter because they trace otherwise invisible wind patterns on Mars, giving scientists data useful for studying the planet's environment and planning future missions.
Mars' versions can tower nearly 8 km high and race at about 45 meters per second, making them much larger and faster than typical dust devils on Earth.
Mamers Valles itself stretches nearly 1,000 km, links Mars' ancient southern highlands to its northern lowlands, and sits in a 3.8-billion-year-old region that also preserves debris-covered glaciers likely hiding water ice.