An important and perhaps dominant source of dust in the martian atmosphere, dust devils play a key role in Mars’ climate. Datasets from previous landed missions have revealed dust devil activity, constrained their structures, and elucidated their dust-lifting capacities. However, each landing site and observational season exhibits unique meteorological properties that shape dust devil activity and help illuminate their dependence on ambient conditions.
Data from the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) instrument suite onboard the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover shows signals of passing vortices and dust devils. Over the mission’s first 180 sols, the rover encountered almost 1000 vortices, perhaps one quarter of which showed signs of dust-lofting. Combining our measurements of their meteorological signals with simple thermodynamic models, we estimates how tall the vortices were, and some reached as high as 2 km into the dusty martian sky.
These kinds of estimates are key for understanding how dust devils help to maintain the perpetual background of atmospheric dust on Mars, which drives martian climate and water loss to space.
Research Publications
- Jackson, B. (2022) “Estimating the Heights of Martian Vortices from Mars 2020 MEDA Data.” in review with Planetary Science Journal.
- Jackson, B. (2022) “Vortices and Dust Devils as Observed by the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer Instruments on Board the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover.” Planetary Science Journal.
Press