NASA’s Curiosity reconnaissance tool, Mars’ colored clouds floating in the sky recorded. In the atmosphere of the Red Planet, these unique clouds formed with the sunset of the Sun offer significant clues to scientists about the atmospheric structure of the planet.

Curiosity’s main camera Mastcam with new images, red and green tones shining clouds attract attention. These images recorded on January 17 (4,426th of Curiosity) are one of the newest examples of atmospheric formations, which scientists call “Noctilucent” or “twilight clouds .. These clouds, where sunlight is disintegrated and created colorful reflections, are sometimes known as “pearl clouds ..

Unique visuals in the Mars atmosphere

Such clouds are located in the upper layers of the Mars atmosphere and often consist of water ice or carbon dioxide ice. However, only those with carbon dioxide ice can show color changing. The clouds seen in the new images are located about 60-80 kilometers of the surface of Mars. These clouds, which are too pale in daylight, can only be seen after sunset.

The twilight clouds were first detected in 1997 during the Pathfinder mission of NASA. Curiosity, which reached Mars in 2012, could not view such clouds until 2019. However, it is interesting that these colorful twilight clouds are seen in certain periods of Mars climate and in the southern hemisphere.

The secret of clouds on Mars

Mark Lemmon, an atmosphere scientist, said in a statement, “Now we have become so predictable that we can plan our shots in advance; The clouds emerge exactly in the same time of the year. ” Scientists still have not been able to solve why the twilight clouds of carbon dioxide ice on Mars are only seen in certain regions.

Each observation is an opportunity to learn more about the particle size and growth rate in the Mars clouds. This provides more information about the atmosphere of the planet.

Curiosity was located on the Sharp Mountain in the Gale Crater just south of Mars’s equator, and in 1997, Pathfinder landed at the Ares Vallis region in the north. NASA’s Persevenian reconnaissance in the Jezero Crater in the northern hemisphere was that the carbon dioxide -based twilight clouds have not been able to observe the carbon dioxide -based twilight clouds since it landed in 2021 in 2021.

According to experts, one of the possible reasons for this situation may be “gravitational waves .. These waves can cool the atmosphere and support the formation of carbon dioxide ice. However, it is not yet known how the gravity waves on Mars work.