The researchers examined 28 hours of audio recordings, documenting 55 episodes of what they consider to be “mini lightning” over two Martian years.
Scientists believe they have captured the sound of lightning strikes on Mars.NASA's Perseverance rover recorded 55 instances of what researchers called "mini lightning" over two Martian years.The French-led research team said the lightning mainly happens during dust storms or dust devils.
Scientists have been looking for electrical activity and lightning at Mars for half a century, said the study’s lead author Baptiste Chide, of the Institute for Research in Astrophysics and Planetology in Toulouse."It opens a completely new field of investigation for Mars science," Chide said, citing the possible chemical effects from electrical discharges. "It’s like finding a missing piece of the puzzle."Lightning has already been confirmed on Jupiter and Saturn, and Mars has long been suspected of having it too.To find it, Chide and his team analyzed 28 hours of Perseverance recordings, documenting episodes of "mini lightning" based on acoustic and electric signals.Electrical discharges generated by the fast-moving dust devils lasted just a few seconds, while those spawned by dust storms lingered as long as 30 minutes."It’s like a thunderstorm on Earth, but barely visible with a naked eye and with plenty of faint zaps," Chide said in an email. He noted that the thin, carbon dioxide-rich Martian atmosphere absorbs much of the sound, making some of the zaps barely perceptible.
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