in News
NASA’s MAVEN probe detected peculiar “undulations” in the Martian atmosphere following a significant coronal mass ejection that impacted the Red Planet in 2023. These variations served as distinct indicators of the Zwan-Wolf effect, a phenomenon previously believed to be unfeasible on Mars.(Image credit: NASA/GSFC)Share this article 0Join the conversationFollow usAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleSubscribe to our newsletter
A process once thought impossible on Mars is now compressing the Red Planet’s atmosphere akin to squeezing toothpaste from a tube, according to a recent investigation. This unexpected finding, revealed by a NASA spacecraft during a potent solar storm, may alter our understanding of hazardous space weather across the solar system, scientists suggest.
The improbable occurrence, known as the Zwan-Wolf effect, was first identified on Earth in 1976 and transpires when “charged particles are compressed like toothpaste emerging from a tube along magnetic formations called flux tubes,” as stated by NASA officials. These flux tubes reside within Earth’s magnetosphere, the intangible field generated by the motion of our planet’s molten metallic core, providing protection from radiation.
Although comparable phenomena likely exist on Jupiter and Saturn, experts had long surmised that the Zwan-Wolf effect could not occur on Mars due to its core having solidified long ago, thus not generating a proper magnetosphere. (This is also the reason for the Red Planet’s notably thin and tenuous atmosphere; without magnetic shielding, the majority of its gases have been dispersed by solar storms.)
However, in the recent study, released on May 18 in the journal Nature Communications, researchers examined data from NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft, which has been circling the Red Planet since 2014 (though NASA lost contact with it last year), and discovered something unusual.
In December 2023, a powerful coronal mass ejection erupted from the sun and struck Mars, temporarily disrupting the remnants of its upper atmosphere and exposing disturbances that could solely be attributed to the Zwan-Wolf effect.
The Zwan-Wolf effect constricts plasma along the periphery of Mars’ ionosphere, mirroring processes within Earth’s magnetosphere.
(Image credit: LASP/CU Boulder)
“While reviewing the information, I unexpectedly observed some quite fascinating undulations,” stated lead author Christopher Fowler, a planetary scientist at West Virginia University, in the announcement. “I would never have anticipated it to be this particular effect,” he remarked.
Distinct from its occurrence on Earth, where the Zwan-Wolf effect manifests tens of thousands of miles above our planet’s surface, the Martian equivalent takes place in the ionosphere — the uppermost atmospheric layer, which is replete with ionized gas, or plasma — at an approximate altitude of 125 miles (200 kilometers).
“Nobody predicted that this effect could even manifest within the atmosphere,” Fowler commented. “That is precisely what renders this discovery even more exhilarating.”
Mars’ Zwan-Wolf effect is likely propelled by a localized magnetic field at the demarcation where solar wind — the continuous flow of charged particles emitted from the sun — interacts with ionospheric plasma, the researchers noted. This implies it is probably a constant occurrence, but it has only now been recognized because the radiation from the CME amplified the effect.
RELATED STORIES
- ‘Almost unbelievable’: A rare solar void briefly expanded Mars’ atmosphere last year, with potential implications for Earth
- Martian Lights! NASA Rover Captures Images of Visible Auroras on the Red Planet for the First Time
- Witness the First Clear Images of ‘Sun Rays’ on Mars in Eerie New NASA Photographs
Consequently, scientists are eager to investigate this phenomenon further to enhance their understanding of its potential impact on future Martian endeavors, as alterations in the ionosphere are likely to influence orbiting spacecraft, communication systems, and the intensity of hazardous radiation reaching the planet’s surface.
“Comprehending the interaction of space weather with Mars is crucial,” stated study co-author Shannon Curry, a research scientist at the Laboratory for Atmospheric Space Physics at the University of Colorado Boulder and the principal investigator for MAVEN, in the announcement. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to grasp “these connections between our home star and the Red Planet,” she added.
Now that the Zwan-Wolf effect’s capacity to occur within planetary atmospheres has been established, we may soon detect it on other celestial bodies within our solar system, such as Venus and Saturn’s largest satellite, Titan, the researchers theorized.
Sourse: www.livescience.com
