Research & Development World

  • R&D World Home
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Careers
    • Chemistry
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Software
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
    • Semiconductors
  • R&D Market Pulse
  • R&D 100
    • Call for Nominations: The 2025 R&D 100 Awards
    • R&D 100 Awards Event
    • R&D 100 Submissions
    • Winner Archive
    • Explore the 2024 R&D 100 award winners and finalists
  • Resources
    • Research Reports
    • Digital Issues
    • R&D Index
    • Subscribe
    • Video
    • Webinars
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Top Labs
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE

Similarities between aurorae on Mars and Earth

By R&D Editors | May 27, 2015

Blue aurorae on Mars: An artist interpretation of what aurorae may look like as seen by the NASA Curiosity rover, were it close to magnetic anomalies on Mars. Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS and CSW/DBAn international team of researchers has, for the first time, predicted the occurrence of aurorae visible to the naked eye on a planet other than Earth.

Mars’ upper atmosphere may be indeed closer to Earth’s than previously thought. Researchers showed that the upper atmosphere of Mars glows blue depending on the activity of the sun. The result was achieved through numerical simulation and a laboratory experiment, called the Planeterrella, used to simulate the aurora. The study was published in Planetary and Space Science.

“The study indicates that the strongest color in the Martian aurorae is deep blue. Green and red also occur, just like on Earth. An astronaut looking up while walking on the red Martian soil would be able, after intense solar eruptions, to see the phenomena with the naked eye,” says researcher Cyril Simon Wedlund of Aalto Univ.’s Dept. of Radio Science and Engineering.

Prediction of multicolor aurora at Mars
The aurorae on Mars were observed for the first time in 2005 with the help of the European Space Agency ESA’s Mars Express satellite. The new prediction is based on a laboratory experiment conducted with the Planeterrella simulator and a theoretical and numerical model developed by the Grenoble Institute of Planetology and Astrophysics (IPAG, France) and NASA.

“The Planeterrella experiment was conducted in France. We replicated the gas of the atmosphere with the most common component on Mars, which is carbon dioxide, after which an electrical discharge was created in a vacuum reminiscent of the Martian upper atmosphere, which led to the formation of a blue glow following the magnetic field structure,” Simon Wedlund says, explaining the experiment.

The present study shows that, on Mars, aurorae also occur in the visible range. Aurorae occur when electrically charged particles of solar origin are driven down along the local magnetic field lines, where they enter the planetary atmosphere and excite its atoms and molecules. On Earth, aurorae are essentially green or red, from atomic oxygen, but even blue-purple, from ionized molecular nitrogen, can be seen.

Only 17 Planeterrellae simulators are currently in use in different parts of the world. Aalto Univ. has developed the first Planeterrella simulator in the Nordic Countries, derived from the one used in this study but with a larger tribute to the historical Birkeland Terrella. The first laboratory experiments are to be conducted by the end of the year.

Source: Aalto Univ.

Related Articles Read More >

2025 R&D layoffs tracker tops 92,000
2028 Olympic air taxis could beat traffic for the lucky few
U.S. Space Force invests $13.7 billion in next-gen launch vehicles from SpaceX, ULA, and Blue Origin
EL SEGUNDO, CA/USA - OCTOBER 13, 2014: Boeing manufactuing facility. Boeing manufactures and sells aircraft, rotorcraft, rockets and satellites. It is the second-largest defense contractor in the world.
8 major R&D moves this week: HHS cuts 10,000 jobs while Anthropic & DataBricks form $100M pact
rd newsletter
EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND STAY CONNECTED
Get the latest info on technologies, trends, and strategies in Research & Development.
RD 25 Power Index

R&D World Digital Issues

Fall 2024 issue

Browse the most current issue of R&D World and back issues in an easy to use high quality format. Clip, share and download with the leading R&D magazine today.

Research & Development World
  • Subscribe to R&D World Magazine
  • Enews Sign Up
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Drug Discovery & Development
  • Pharmaceutical Processing
  • Global Funding Forecast

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search R&D World

  • R&D World Home
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Careers
    • Chemistry
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Software
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
    • Semiconductors
  • R&D Market Pulse
  • R&D 100
    • Call for Nominations: The 2025 R&D 100 Awards
    • R&D 100 Awards Event
    • R&D 100 Submissions
    • Winner Archive
    • Explore the 2024 R&D 100 award winners and finalists
  • Resources
    • Research Reports
    • Digital Issues
    • R&D Index
    • Subscribe
    • Video
    • Webinars
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Top Labs
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE