FP trendsMarch 23, 2021 4:07:26 PM IS
A car-sized rover that landed on Mars on August 6, 2012, better known as the Curiosity rover, captured stunning images of clouds passing over the Martian surface. Filmed by the cameras attached to the top of Curiosity, the five-minute clip shows clouds above the surface of Mars. The images were captured on March 19, 2021 and shared by North Carolina State University scientist Dr. Paul Byrne.
According to a report from the independent, five minutes of time were captured by the navigation camera on Curiosity in eight separate images that were sewn together. The “nocturnal” clouds on Mars in the video can be lit by the sun even at night, due to how high they are above the surface.
Clouds in the sky, passing slightly overhead.
On Mars, Friday, March 19, 2021. pic.twitter.com/jJpemPefIV
– Prof. Paul Byrne (@ThePlanetaryGuy) March 20, 2021
The clouds seen in the video seem to move similarly to those on Earth. But the report notes that due to the large difference in the atmospheres of the two planets, the clouds must have formed in different ways. The atmosphere of Mars is thinner than that of Earth. While the atmosphere surrounding our home plant is rich in nitrogen and oxygen, Mars’ atmosphere is rich in carbon dioxide, European Space Agency established.
Comparing the atmospheres of Mars and Earth. Image: ESA
Snow was detected on the surface by the Phoenix lander in 2008, according to Independent. But unlike Earth, snow on Mars is made up of carbon dioxide. The thin atmosphere of Mars causes light clouds to form above the surface, while the clouds on Earth are mostly thick. It is believed that dust formed when space debris reaches the planet’s atmosphere is responsible for the formation of clouds.
The Red Planet, considered an “alternative” world that human beings can inhabit in the future, is half the size of Earth..