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A massive dust storm on Mars completely engulfed the planet and it could take months before it disappears.
On May 30, scientists first noticed a small dust storm on Mars. . NASA says that small-scale dust storms are common every year when Mars gets closer to the sun, but once every six to eight years, these storms grow quickly and manage to invade the entire planet.
scientists who focus on Mars to understand the weather (and) climate of Mars, "said Andrew Fazekas, columnist for astronomy at National Geographic, at CTV News Channel
" Every day is an event of Learning for scientists about dust storms. "
The storm became so intense that the solar-powered Opportunity rover – which landed on Mars in 2004 – went into hibernation due to a lack of sunlight.Nasa believes that this could be up to In September before the fog clears enough for the rover to wake up.
As Opportunity hibernates, several satellites are circling Mars to try to understand what's causing a small global dust storm. NASA examines the storm:
- The Mars Odyssey satellite has increased its atmospheric tests every 10 days to twice a week
- The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter maps the planet every day and was able to document the rapid growth of the storm
- The MAVEN satellite studies the impact of the storm on the upper atmosphere of the planet
- The Curiosity rover with nuclear energy is not affected by the penur ie light on Mars and observe dust particles on the ground
Fazekas says that all the information collected on Mars is crucial when it comes to planning a possible human expedition on the planet.
"The big risks are for our robotic spacecraft that are on the ground and for any future human mission to Mars," he said. "We want to know exactly how a dust storm like this can affect missions."
The March dust storm erasing the sun over Opportunity has ceased to intensify. It covers a quarter of the planet. All mobile subsystems are disabled, with the exception of a mission clock, programmed to wake up the computer to check power levels. Full status report: https://t.co/VwuuPwEpPA pic.twitter.com/rQvHDsxuQj
– Spirit and Oppy (@MarsRovers) June 13, 2018
Mars Storm Watch: The Dust the storm is now turning around the planet. No signal yet from Opportunity, but no response is expected until the sky begins to disappear. We continue to listen every day. https://t.co/VwuuPwEpPA pic.twitter.com/8q7lDoezxs
– Spirit and Oppy (@MarsRovers) June 20, 2018
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