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[The images used for this video were taken by Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s Mars Color Imager.]
The smallest rain showers spotted on May 30th turned into a global event before June 20th. It forced the solar-powered Opportunity rover to stay on standby and conserve energy, but the younger nuclear-powered Curiosity rover and NASA's orbiters are unaffected and can continue to collect data during the storm. The Mars Color Imager aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) maps the planet every afternoon to track the evolution of the storm. The MRO Mars Climate Sounder instrument also measured the temperature changes of the atmosphere.
The Mars Odyssey THEMIS instrument tracked the surface and atmospheric temperature of the planet, as well as the amount of dust in the atmosphere. The data collected will help scientists understand how the storm has developed, changed and dissipated over time. NASA's MAVEN probe is also investigating how the storm affects the upper atmosphere of Mars, while Curiosity monitors things from the ground, monitoring winds and measuring dust particles.
It may take some time before you know if Curiosity and However, the probes unravel any Martian secret. Scientists believe that the storm could last for months and that the fog will only go away enough so that the Opportunity can start working again in September.
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